We Real Cool      by Gwendolyn Brooks

We real cool. We
Left school. We

Lurk late. We
Strike straight. We

Sing sin. We
Thin gin. We


Jazz June. We
Die Soon

    I chose to use the whole poem because of its brevity and the power of the whole poem.  It would have been difficult to just choose a few lines.  This poem appealed to me because of the subject and the rhythm that is used to give you a feel for these young men.  The opening of the poem as well as further background information gleaned from an interview with the poet tells us that this poem was inspired by young men at the pool hall.  The cadence of the poem represents their 'cool' way of talking.  The use of We at the end of every line demonstrates their group identification.  It reminds me of the t-shirt saying "Remember you're unique...just like everybody else".  These young men were hanging out trying to be cool and part of the cool group.  The absence of the We at the end of the final line adds power to those last two words.  They just hang there in the air, menacingly.