Gwendolyn Brooks 'Poem' We Real Cool

The poem “We Real Cool” is a short but sweet poem that, even though it only has a few words, is very deep and impactful. The author, Gwendolyn Brooks’ idea about what being “cool” really means in “We Real Cool” still has relevance for an audience 56 years later. It is interesting to see how culture isn’t very different today than it was when the poem was written. Although the poem is very short and uses the word “we” numerous times it still has a very large significance and meaning to it. The pressing idea of being “cool” that is shown in the poem is interesting because none of the things that the narrator and his/her friends do are really that great of activities to engage in. The poem is coming from a time of teenage rebellion and the need to defy authority so the cool things to do would be to do what is wrong. This is exemplified in the lines “We real cool. We Left school.” (Brooks 1-2) as it can be seen leaving school, presumably early, is not a great idea because it will negatively effect grades and attendance. In the next line, which says, “We lurk late” (Brooks 3) it still follows the idea that to be cool one must disobey the rules by, in this case, stay out later than necessary. Not only do the words reflect the ideas of being cool, the way that Gwendolyn Brooks wrote the poem also shows an air of

Once I started thinking about the actually meaning and significance behind the poem in and of itself I found it to be quite interesting and I couldn’t seem to stop thinking about it. The poem is interesting because it still has a lot of cultural significance to it because the ideas of what constitute being “cool” haven’t really changed that much throughout the years and so what is said in the poem still holds up in today’s