“We Real Cool”

By Gwendolyn Brooks
Poetry Analysis
 Poem:
THE POOL PLAYERS.
SEVEN AT THE GOLDEN SHOVEL.

We real cool. We
Left school. We

Lurk late. We
Strike straight. We

Sing sin. We
Thin gin. We

Jazz June. We
Die soon.
Reading:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=9&v=JBpxJb24O8A&feature=emb_logo
[1960]
 § We Real Cool holds in its 8 lines the whole
lives of a teenage gang, from their
coolness to their demise. It could be a
motto, it could be a song, a chant, a lyric
rage against the powers that be.
§ It has end rhyme and internal rhyme
which is technically full - cool/school,
sin/ginand the repetitive We; this is rhyme
that binds together and holds tight,
suggestive of the brotherhood of the gang.
Overview The poem is not too long to induce
monotony.
§ The tone is one of defiance and stubborn
allegiance to the gang. This is a group of
outsiders who prefer pool to school,
dropping out to serious study. Late
alcoholic nights out on the street seem
much more preferable to dull nights in.
 § 1st African American to receive Pulitzer
Prize for poetry. (1950)
Background of the § Early years –
author... § Grew up poor
1917-2000 § “Spurned by other’s for loving to read
and write”
 Professional career –
§ Worked for NAACP
§ Poems discussed racism, struggle, day to day life
§ Notably inter –racial discrimination
§ Changed from structured poetry to free verse
 § Poem is a commentary on the defiance
of youth (embracing non-conformity)
and their recognition of the end result of
such a life.

We Real Cool § A song that defines who they are at they

very moment they exist. No
unnecessary words needed to define
them – their lives are simple so the
poem must be simple.
 The Pool Players at the Golden Shovel
§ Players – actors in their own play (short
/ end)
§ Seven – luck
§ Golden – wealth of youth
We Real Cool § Shovel – work / death / burial

§ Overall, before the poem begins it sets

the ‘stage’ for how these boys see their
lives through analysis of subtext.
 § ‘We’
§ Stop after We – verbal/mental pause,
symbolizes their validity of presence
§ Signifies Value – loud: bold / soft:

We Real Cool uncertain

§ Represents a bond perhaps brotherhood.
The poet is speaking on behalf of a
community
 Acts of defiance/non-conformity that
symbolizes their existence (coolness)
§ Left School (school isn’t for them)
§ Lurk Late (stay out when they want)
§ Strike Straight (blunt and aggressive
We Real Cool towards their desires)
§ Sing Sin (say what they want)
§ Thin Gin (drink what they want)
§ Jazz June (sexual power)
§ Die soon (they determine their exit)
 § Brooks stated that the form is
determined by the boys in the poem,
not the rhythm itself.

§ Rhythm does play a factor however:

§ The boys in the poem have limitations –
they must adhere to a structure – but they
We Real Cool can alter the limitations to suit them.
§ This is why the poem has a rhyme
scheme that sounds simplistic but
relevant to their social conditions.
§ Repetition – daily routine
§ Alliteration – recognize value of pattern
(Lurk Late, Strike Straight, Sing Sin) and
makes it [them] memorable
 § Dropouts (which could effectively mean
many things) who through the poem
value each other instead of the social
and educational fabric that they existed
in.

We Real Cool § Their freedom to live in the poem

inevitably ensures that their freedom to
die will be followed in the same fashion.
§ Blessing or curse?
§ Brooks commentary on the social
condition of the civil rights movement is
clear through this poem.
 § We is a collective term for a generation
that Brooks sees in her culture.
§ We – are a group in the 1950’s & 60’s
who suddenly didn’t understand why
We Real Cool they have trying to conform to a society
which didn’t want to recognize them
anyway.
 § The alliterative lurk late has negative
connotations. If a gang of youths are lurking
around the implication is that they will sooner
or later end up in trouble, become known to
the law. They're wasting time, throwing their
young lives away.
§ To strike straight is to hit the pool ball hard
and true - innocent enough in a game of pool
- but what about the strike of a fist, the direct

Literary Device punch, the no nonsense jab, right hook? This

poem brings with it a kind of ambiguity - the

Use of lifestyle of these players is questionable to

say the least.

Alliteration § And when they sing sin does this mean they
are going against all the religious truths they
were brought up with? Are they foul
mouthing, undermining the Christian faith?
§ They may be true to their own oaths and
passions, they may be outsiders, not like the
mass of the mainstream, but there is the
notion too that they are a little pathetic.
 § Instructions: Write a poem about your
own “we” – a group to which you
belong. Maybe some people don’t
appreciate or value your group. Maybe
your group gets criticized a lot. Or
Activity maybe your group is known and loved
by many people. Whatever your group
is, help a reader see what makes it
special to you.