Student Question
In "We Real Cool," does the poet blame or sympathize with the pool players for their bleak futures?
Quick answer:
The poet Gwendolyn Brooks exhibits both sympathy and critique towards the pool players in "We Real Cool." While she highlights their self-destructive lifestyle and mocks their self-perception as "real cool," she also implicitly questions the societal conditions that lead them to such bleak futures. Brooks portrays their choices critically but also suggests a deeper social critique about the lack of opportunities contributing to their circumstances.
While I believe Brooks feels sympathy for the pool playing dropouts, I read the poem as sharply critical of the lives they are leading. I have trouble with the idea of having to choose between an feeling of "blame" or "sympathy" toward these particular individuals because I think the poem is not so much taking a side as simply depicting a dead-end mindset that is born of lack of opportunity. Social critique is implicit in this poem. Brooks is making a nuanced move: she is both criticizing the choices made by these young men and, by shining a light on them, implicitly raising a question about why their lives are being wasted in this way.
She definitely is critical and mocking the young men's self definition as "real cool." Their lives might look good on one level—they play pool, drink, and "jazz" around having fun—but the poem ends on with the words "Die soon." It is sad that these young men are deluding themselves and sad that they are throwing away their lives; none of this, Brooks seems to say, will have a good outcome.
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