Poem Blog Response

“We Real Cool,” by Gwendolyn Brooks

I love the simplicity of this poem. Though Brooks uses few words to paint her image, the words she does use are extremely specific. Her lines “We sing sin. We thin gin” vividly illuminate an image of teenagers singing the taboo song of their generation, drinking gin on a carefree night. I also love the contrast between her first and last lines: “We real cool” and “We die soon”. The juxtaposition between life and death comments on the teenage tendency to neglect safety when experimenting with life.  

“Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird,” Wallace Stevens

I love the format of this poem. I think Stevens is clever in his approach to capturing the nature of a blackbird. His fifth stanza is my favorite:

“V


I do not know which to prefer,


The beauty of inflections


Or the beauty of innuendoes,


The blackbird whistling


Or just after.”

This stanza provided me with the opportunity to think about what a blackbird’s whistling can signify. I also enjoy the relationship presented in this stanza between two lovers and the nature of a blackbird. Additionally, the elongated rhythm of the poem makes it fun to read. In fact, a blackbird can represent the rhythm of this poem: it’s mysterious and intriguing.

“Still I Rise,” Maya Angelou

This poem is one of my all time favorites. Maya Angelou’s empowering voice inspires me every time I read this. Her opening stanza is monumental:

“You may write me down in history


With your bitter, twisted lies,


You may trod me in the very dirt


But still, like dust, I’ll rise.”

Her tone is palpable and fierce. Her use of “bitter, twisted lies” and “trod me in the very dirt” make it clear that she will let nothing stand in her way of being a powerful woman. I love this poem because Maya Angelou is confident in her being and acknowledges her strength as a human.