Summary Of We Real Cool By Gwendolyn Brooks

Gwendolyn Brooks’ (1917-2000) is a notable author and teacher. Why she was the first African American author to win the Pulitzer Prize is no surprise because her works deal with powerful struggles of everyday people. Her poem “We Real Cool” (published in 1960) is no different since it was written during the civil rights movement which consisted of tension, something this poem deals with. Her poem “We Real Cool” is a part of her book titled, The Bean Eaters. Brooks depicts the consequences of the theme, teenage rebellion. Brooks writes, “We die soon” an implication of what can happen because of rebellion. Her poem represents a lesson to those who want to choose to rebel with what will make them successful- not caring about your life can potentially lead to death.
The poem being eight lines and written in simple context shows the pool players as uneducated. Brooks writes, “We left school” and “We die soon”. Because the teenagers were not found of school they chose to leave and due to their choices it would not take them long before they died. The short three word sentences show

Teenagers already think life is carefree because all they have ever known is simple. Brooks writes, “We thin gin” this implies all they do is spend their time drinking because they do not have responsibilities to tend to. The carefree tone is supported by the quote, “We lurk late” if they are out late it means they have nothing to worry about the next morning. Because the teens have left school they have nothing to do but be careless. “We die soon” has a direct tone because if they do not change their perspectives on life the only thing that will set them free is death. It shows the consequence of what will happen to a teenager if they conform to the common rebellion of teenagers. The two different tones of the poem are done on purpose so for those who have different mindsets can understand the lesson that is being