tHE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN POET`S STYLE

Woodrow Rowell

Instructor - Stacey Cutbush

English 1500

July 29 , 2007

We Real Cool , Harlem , and The Secretary Chant : An Analysis

We Real Cool by Gwendolyn Brooks , Harlem by Langston Hughes , and The Secretary Chant by Marge Piercy are all popular poems from the twentieth century . They represent the time and the social issues of their respective eras . Each poem speaks to others in a way that evokes emotion . They are all linked together by several qualities . The poems all have a rhythm , style , and message that evoke emotions from the

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Each of these highly acclaimed poets have a style that is truly their own . Gwendolyn Brooks in We Real Cool uses an upbeat tone about young adults who through their real future away because they think that an education is not cool but she ends the poem with a thoughtful message that the road that they have taken leads to nowhere . She states that the lifestyle that they have chosen , will lead to an early death . It literally means that the activities that they that engage them at the moment are dangerous , but it also means that they are dead figuratively Her message is that education is extremely important and can be the only way that someone will not end up in a dead end life

Langston Hughes , the author of Harlem , impacts the reader through his dark and shocking style . He stresses the importance of dreams and goals in a person 's life and he does this through imagery . He paints the picture of a sore that dries crusty , runs , and stinks . The image is sickening , but he intends for it to be . He also delivers a strong message at the end of the poem . He warns society that by repressing the dreams of its minorities , they will one day have taken all that they can and they will explode

Maybe it just sags

like a heavy load

Or does it explode (Hughes

Marge Piercy 's The Secretary Chant deals with a strong subject in a completely humorous way . Her tone is satirical throughout the poem She , like the other two poets , waits until the end to reveal her message that women are many times taken for granted , and lose their humanness to their jobs . She catches one 's attention through her humorous images

My hips are a desk

From my ears hang

chains of clips (Piercy

Each poet uses rhythm to his /her advantage . Brooks emphasizes the word We at the end of every sentence . This gives a pause in the flow to highlight the jazzy rhythm that she employs . This not only grabs attention , it highlights the word so that she is not judgmental , but a part of the lifestyle . The speaker knows what he /she is talking about because of experience . Piercy is almost musical when read orally even though it is free verse . By humorous and light heartedly presenting the nonhuman form of the secretary , she can add her point with a tongue...