Gwendolyn Brooks was a woman of many talents. Brooks 's poems are mostly based on her major themes on rich African American culture, and the era she lived in , the era of World War II . World War II shows constantly in her poems in her settings of war and the circumstances of men going to war and quite possibly death. Gwendolyn Brooks major themes of black culture and war were impacted by the era she lived in, this deeply affected her writing and work. She used her poetry and talent to focus in on different races and cultures her constant diversity in her poems is what made them become so famous and important. Brooks experimented with her writing by using different literary styles such as form, rhyme, and diction. Her early work was also usually
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Brooks used her poetry to show the daily lives of of black women given their economic, social, and gender constraints. Brooks focused many of her vignettes on the lives of urban black woman. Brooks also invented the combination of sonnet and ballad forms.
Gwendolyn Brooks was born in Topeka, Kansas , on June 7, 1917. Brooks was raised in chicago and was the author of more than twenty books about poetry. These books included In The Mecca, Children Coming Home, Blacks, and To Disembark some of Brooks most famous work that were included in her book Annie Allen which was published in 1949. Brooks received a Pulitzer Prize for her book, Annie Allen. She began writing as a teenager she then went to achieve fame for her 1945 collection of A Street In Bronzeville. Brooks also became to be known as the first African American in history to win a Pulitzer Prize. As a teenager Brooks moved from high school to …show more content…
She also lived during the Civil Rights Movement which explains the major themes of racial prejudice in her poems and writing. In 1960, the year Strong Men, Riding Horses appeared in The Bean Eaters, the Civil Rights Act was still four years away . Making it legal in some states for employers to discriminate against possible employees based on their race and culture. The whites in the country refused nationally to make a change civilly, and racially. Due to these racial barriers it made it harder for African Americans to get by in places such as the ghetto. During this time the best way to get away fro the stress of it all was to watch a theatrical screen light up at the sight of a western movie. Western movies were just making their mark in America and the movies became a way to forget stresses in average day life and a way to entertain. The movies mostly attacked Indian culture leaving the Indians in the movies as the “bad guys”. The white cowboy riding into the sunset showed heroism and superior race. African Americans did not play such positive role models in these movies , but instead were given stereotypical roles like being a black housemaid serving for the superior and rich whites. Brooks wrote her poem The Bean Eaters during the 1950’s it was known as a time of bland harmony. The 1950s was a rather
Brooks used her poetry to show the daily lives of of black women given their economic, social, and gender constraints. Brooks focused many of her vignettes on the lives of urban black woman. Brooks also invented the combination of sonnet and ballad forms.
Gwendolyn Brooks was born in Topeka, Kansas , on June 7, 1917. Brooks was raised in chicago and was the author of more than twenty books about poetry. These books included In The Mecca, Children Coming Home, Blacks, and To Disembark some of Brooks most famous work that were included in her book Annie Allen which was published in 1949. Brooks received a Pulitzer Prize for her book, Annie Allen. She began writing as a teenager she then went to achieve fame for her 1945 collection of A Street In Bronzeville. Brooks also became to be known as the first African American in history to win a Pulitzer Prize. As a teenager Brooks moved from high school to …show more content…
She also lived during the Civil Rights Movement which explains the major themes of racial prejudice in her poems and writing. In 1960, the year Strong Men, Riding Horses appeared in The Bean Eaters, the Civil Rights Act was still four years away . Making it legal in some states for employers to discriminate against possible employees based on their race and culture. The whites in the country refused nationally to make a change civilly, and racially. Due to these racial barriers it made it harder for African Americans to get by in places such as the ghetto. During this time the best way to get away fro the stress of it all was to watch a theatrical screen light up at the sight of a western movie. Western movies were just making their mark in America and the movies became a way to forget stresses in average day life and a way to entertain. The movies mostly attacked Indian culture leaving the Indians in the movies as the “bad guys”. The white cowboy riding into the sunset showed heroism and superior race. African Americans did not play such positive role models in these movies , but instead were given stereotypical roles like being a black housemaid serving for the superior and rich whites. Brooks wrote her poem The Bean Eaters during the 1950’s it was known as a time of bland harmony. The 1950s was a rather