Poetic Explication: “We Real Cool” We Real Cool, is a rather short poem written by Gwendolyn Brooks in 1960, right in the middle of the Civil Rights Movement. Near the beginning of the poem it sounds like everything is quite alright with everyone, with “We real cool,” but by the end of the poem, everything is not ok, and the poem ends with “We / die soon,” which means that death will soon occur, if change does not happen (Brooks 3, 9-10). Through the use several literary techniques, Brooks describes the racial oppression that was going on during that time period. This poem can certainly have more themes than racial oppression, however racial oppression is the most notable. In the beginning of the poem where it says, “The Pool Players /
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If these two lines were not in the poem it would not have sounded like racial oppression at all in this poem, because it would not have sounded as if they feel like they are in harm’s way. The rioting and the protests, some of which was unpeaceful during the civil rights movement, seems to be what brooks is describing in the two lines above. In the poem, Brooks rhymed “Jazz June. We / die soon,” this insinuates that they are having fun, but that perhaps because of the oppression and riots during this time, death could be eminent if change does not happen (Brooks 9-10). These lines certainly help develop the idea of racial oppression, but if one did not understand the line before it, it could me that it was a bunch of white boys having fun, and who are on the wrong track, and because of the way they act, are about to make a mistake that could be …show more content…
Around the time Brooks wrote this poem, there were beginning to be talks about racial oppression. According to the African American Review, whites thought “Brooks and her work in retrospect looked foolish, but at the time seemed reasonable” (African American Review 558). Considering whites considered Brooks work to be “reasonable”, proves that Brooks was describing the racial oppression that her and others faced before and during the Civil Rights Movement (African American Review
If these two lines were not in the poem it would not have sounded like racial oppression at all in this poem, because it would not have sounded as if they feel like they are in harm’s way. The rioting and the protests, some of which was unpeaceful during the civil rights movement, seems to be what brooks is describing in the two lines above. In the poem, Brooks rhymed “Jazz June. We / die soon,” this insinuates that they are having fun, but that perhaps because of the oppression and riots during this time, death could be eminent if change does not happen (Brooks 9-10). These lines certainly help develop the idea of racial oppression, but if one did not understand the line before it, it could me that it was a bunch of white boys having fun, and who are on the wrong track, and because of the way they act, are about to make a mistake that could be …show more content…
Around the time Brooks wrote this poem, there were beginning to be talks about racial oppression. According to the African American Review, whites thought “Brooks and her work in retrospect looked foolish, but at the time seemed reasonable” (African American Review 558). Considering whites considered Brooks work to be “reasonable”, proves that Brooks was describing the racial oppression that her and others faced before and during the Civil Rights Movement (African American Review