Structure in \"We Real Cool\"

¶ … Structure in "We Real Cool" and "Eight O' Clock"

Structure is significant in poetry in that it allows readers to identify with what is going in a poem. Two poems that demonstrate the importance of rhythm, rhyme, and repetition are Gwendolyn Brooks' poem, "We Real Cool" and a.E. Housman's poem, "Eight O' Clock." The structures of the poems rounds out the image we have in our minds because they are working to complete the picture. Brooks presents us with a poem that reads like music while Housman presents us with a poem that feels like death. Both poems are examples of how structure can work with the topic of a poem and complete its message.

The structure of "We Real Cool" is significant to its meaning in that it describes the young men. The repetition in this poem is noteworthy because of what the poet is repeating. We "we" in the poem is emphasized by where the poet places the word. By putting "we" at the end of each line, the poet is emphasizing the seven pool players. They are "cool" (1) and they do want they want to do. They "left school" (2) and "sing sin" (5) and they are the most important people in their lives. The rhythm of this poem is significant as well because it reads like a jazz song. We can almost see these young men repeating this snappy tune in their heads or under their breath when they are shooting pool. The rhyming adds to the mood and tone of the poem because it emphasizes the singsong quality of the poem being like a song. The lines are short as well as the sentences. In addition, the poem itself is short, highlighting the notion that these boys know that they will "die soon" (8). The poem is a reference to their lives, consisting of leaving school, staying out late, singing, drinking gin, and enjoying jazz. In "Eight O'Clock," we se the same of importance placed upon the structure of the poem. The line breaks in this poem are sudden and create a mood of suspense because the reader must move to the next line to read the rest of the story. When the poet begins counting, we have a sense of something dreadful about to occur. The rhyming in this poem is also effective in that the rhyming words are strong and visual. In the last stanza, the words "luck" (Housman 5) and "struck" (8) are powerful in that we can almost hear the clock tower striking the hour. Unlike the rhyme and rhythm in "We Real Cool," this rhythm is slow and contemplative. The poet wants us to read his slowly so we can identify with the man awaiting his death. Both poems utilize structure to establish a mood and tone that we can relate to the subjects of the poems.