The Full Text of “We Real Cool”
The Full Text of “We Real Cool”
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“We Real Cool” Introduction
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“We Real Cool” Summary
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“We Real Cool” Themes
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Rebellion, Youth, and Mortality
Where this theme appears in the poem:- Before Line 1
- Lines 1-8
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Rebellion and Social Change
Where this theme appears in the poem:- Before Line 1
- Lines 1-8
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Line-by-Line Explanation & Analysis of “We Real Cool”
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Before Line 1, Lines 1-2
The Pool Players. ...
... Left school. -
Lines 2-6
We ...
... Thin gin. -
Lines 6-8
We ...
... Die soon.
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“We Real Cool” Symbols
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School
Where this symbol appears in the poem:- Line 2: “school”
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June
Where this symbol appears in the poem:- Line 7: “June”
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“We Real Cool” Poetic Devices & Figurative Language
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Enjambment
Where enjambment appears in the poem:- Lines 1-2: “We / Left”
- Lines 2-3: “We / Lurk”
- Lines 3-4: “We / Strike”
- Lines 4-5: “We / Sing”
- Lines 5-6: “We / Thin”
- Lines 6-7: “We / Jazz”
- Lines 7-8: “We / Die”
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End-Stopped Line
Where end-stopped line appears in the poem:- Line 8: “soon.”
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Caesura
Where caesura appears in the poem:- Line 1: “cool. We”
- Line 2: “school. We”
- Line 3: “late. We”
- Line 4: “straight. We”
- Line 5: “sin. We”
- Line 6: “gin. We”
- Line 7: “June. We”
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Alliteration
Where alliteration appears in the poem:- Line 2: “L”
- Line 3: “L,” “l”
- Line 4: “ St,” “st”
- Line 5: “S,” “s”
- Line 7: “J,” “J”
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Assonance
Where assonance appears in the poem:- Line 1: “e,” “ea,” “oo,” “e”
- Line 2: “oo”
- Line 3: “a”
- Line 4: “ai”
- Line 5: “i,” “i”
- Line 6: “i,” “i”
- Line 7: “u”
- Line 8: “oo”
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Consonance
Where consonance appears in the poem:- Line 1: “l,” “c,” “l”
- Line 2: “L,” “s,” “ch,” “l”
- Line 3: “L,” “k,” “l,” “t”
- Line 4: “St,” “r,” “k,” “str,” “t”
- Line 5: “S,” “s,” “n”
- Line 6: “n,” “n”
- Line 7: “J,” “J,” “n”
- Line 8: “n”
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Metaphor
Where metaphor appears in the poem:- Line 5: “Sing sin”
- Line 7: “Jazz June”
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Parataxis
Where parataxis appears in the poem:- Lines 1-8
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“We Real Cool” Vocabulary
Select any word below to get its definition in the context of the poem. The words are listed in the order in which they appear in the poem.
- The Golden Shovel
- Lurk
- Strike Straight
- Sin
- Thin Gin
- Jazz
- June
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(Location in poem: Before Line 1: “the Golden Shovel”)
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Form, Meter, & Rhyme Scheme of “We Real Cool”
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Form
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Meter
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Rhyme Scheme
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“We Real Cool” Speaker
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“We Real Cool” Setting
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Literary and Historical Context of “We Real Cool”
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More “We Real Cool” Resources
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External Resources
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What Is Jazz? — The Smithsonian Museum offers a brief history and definition of jazz.
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Gwendolyn Brooks Reads "We Real Cool." — The poet reads "We Real Cool" aloud and discusses its meaning.
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Gwendolyn Brooks's Biography — A detailed biography of Brooks from the Poetry Foundation.
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"We Real Cool" Animated Video — An animated video from the Poetry Foundation and Manual Cinema imagines how Brooks wrote "We Real Cool."
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An Interview with Brooks — Gwendolyn Brooks discusses two of her most famous poems with Chicago Public Radio.
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LitCharts on Other Poems by Gwendolyn Brooks
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