(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.
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Irony
From guest Katie (contact)
I really like the irony in this poem, from the first line and the last line. Everything they are saying up until the very last line goes with the first until they have that last statement at the end. It's a great poem. -
We Real Cool
From guest Peteskid (contact)
the first stanza suggests the defining point of the poem...we left school... learning did not end, but the venue changed to streets and people, shutting off a mainstream future for something far different probably far less rewarding. Written during a time of focus on education opportunity, opening colleges to the poor and middle class, cusp of the VietNam War and much social upheaval. The end line is also incredibly revealing...We die soon...the significantly shorter life expectancy characterized by youth and urban factors. The war in Vietnam changed things quite a bit, the young men as described here might have been among the most likely to find military service in time of war under the draft and college deferral system. Overall this poem is a dramatic reflection of aspects urban life in the era in which it was written. -
Duh
From guest Aaron Dunham (contact)
What is your hair color? You have to be a blonde to not understand that the parenthesis are not there as part of the poem and yes, im sure theres a reason for them. Lets leave it at that, shall we? -
meaning
From guest Me (contact)
Some analyze this poem's meaning as those who follow the crowd, lurking late and keeping a hustle(thinning gin) but following the crowd is not always the best choice(We die soon). I think the line "We Real Cool" is more sarcastic than making a statement.8) -
this is a musical poem...very simple and sweet
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You know, now that I think about it, you're right. When I first read this piece on paper, the two lines were italicized, and I assumed they were the first two lines of the piece rather than the title.
Thank you for being so attentive and prompt! It's very appreciated.
Elle
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Actually that isn't the first two lines, from the research I did on the internet just now, that's the title of the piece. Not the first two lines of the piece.
I will change it, or someone will change it, tomorrow, right now there are difficulties in editing and the like here at Oldpo and 'we' aren't able to correct it.
My comment on the Poem
I feel that this perception can be given to perhaps every other situation in the world that one could think of. It's a good piece, as the dialect down, and it doesn't stray.
A good piece that Brooks has written here.
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I don't know why the first two lines are not included in this "The pool players/Seven at the Golden Shovel". The Golden Shovel is supposed to be the pool hall, but it's also a reference that their hard living lifestyle may be fun (golden) but it will lead to their untimely deaths (shovel=gravedigger's shovel).
All the same this is an amazing poem that I adore.
Elle -
you have to be moved by the plight of these men. the bravado, half-false, the suffering below the surface of the vacousness they throw themselves into. Their death is not fun, it is real.
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I like this poem as well. It is short and it makes sense! Seven young pool players do what they like to do and deserve the result. It is not a pathetic poem. I see what they are doing is quite happy not sad.
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I'm surprised no one has commented on this. It's a predominant poem in most of my modern poetry collections. Anyway, I like it. One of those poems that's fun and original, yet not too much. AND it's short.
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