LIT 112: American Literature: 1945–Present Learning Unit 3: Audio

Thinking Points for Poems by Gwendolyn Brooks

Speaker: Rhonda Eakins

Before we look at individual poems, I want to give you a few introductory comments. First, you should have your book out during this discussion because I will be reading directly from each poem, and I want you to be looking at the page while you’re listening to me read. I know you’re probably thinking, “You know, I can read it on my own. I don’t need to listen as you read.” Well, that’s true, but I think it will actually help to listen to each poem. Poetry is very “auditory;” that means you really need to hear it. In poetry, the sound of each word and the combinations of sounds are very important. Poetry is a sensory experience, and because hearing is one of those senses, I want you to listen.

I’d also want to give you a few more general tips about reading poetry. We’re going to be reading it often and on throughout the term, so I want you to get a handle on it. Here are just a few things I think will help:

1. Remember that the title is part of the poem. Don’t ignore it. You should also ask yourself why the author chose that particular title. 2. Obviously, one of the most important things to know about any poem is what is going on. Many of Brooks’ poems portray a particular situation or tell some sort of story. You need to figure out what is going on, and it usually isn’t that difficult. Sometimes, however, people get so focused on deciphering what a poem “means” that they forget to look at what the poem is saying. 3. Pay attention to each word. If you don’t know a word, you should look it up. (I don’t think you have to always look words up when you read other forms of literature, but because each word is so important in a poem, you must know what each one means.) I think it was Mark Twain who said, “The difference between the right word and almost the right word is like the difference between lightening and a lightening bug.” So pay attention to each word. 4. Pay attention to the connotations of the words. Connotations are the emotional and/or intellectual “baggage” words carry. The actual meaning of a word is its denotation. For instance, the word “woman” and the word “broad” can have the same denotation – a female person. But obviously the connotations are quite different. I wouldn’t want to be called a broad. 5. Listen to the way the poet uses sound. Sometimes this involves traditional rhyme, sometimes it might be alliteration, sometimes it might be sound devices that are more subtle. You should also note the rhythm of the poem. Does the poem have a strong, regular rhythm, or is it more irregular? 6. Try to see, feel, smell, and taste the images. Most poems usually show more than they tell. They hit us on a sensory level. For instance, when you read “Lovers of the Poor,” be sure to get a feel for how the apartment smells, looks, and sounds.

Okay – that will get you started. If you want to go into more depth on some of the more technical aspects of poetry, I suggest that you take an Introduction to Literature or an Introduction to Poetry class. These courses get into all of this in a lot more detail. We want to concentrate on a few specific poems by Gwendolyn Brooks. Again, remember that you should have your book out so you can be

Page 1 of 8 LIT 112: American Literature: 1945–Present Learning Unit 3: Audio reading the poem while we’re talking about it. I’ll talk you through the first poem very thoroughly so you can get an idea of how to go about reading poems like these. I’ll be a little less thorough with some of the others because I want you to learn to read these on your own.

“The Kitchenette Building” First, I just want to read through the poem while you follow along.

(Poem can be found among the reading materials for this course.)

The first thing we should talk about is the title. Many of you may not know what a kitchenette building is because they are much more common in urban areas than they are in rural Iowa. Basically, a kitchenette building is a one apartment that has a small area for cooking. These were a common type of housing for African Americans in the 1940s. The following description, taken from the Encyclopedia of Chicago, will give you a more thorough explanation:

Single-family and houses meant for two and three families were converted to more intensive use. Brick with medium and large apartments rented on a monthly basis were divided into one-room units, using beaver-board partitions. The resulting units were often rented out by the week as furnished , although the amount of offered was marginal. Entire families occupied single rooms, sharing with other residents an inadequate number of and , exceeding the capacity, and leading to a serious deterioration in sanitary conditions. During the 1940s, more than 80,000 conversions of this type had occurred in Chicago, leading to a 52 percent increase in units lacking private bath facilities.

Obviously, this is substandard housing. Brooks seems interested in the impact such an environment would have on the people who live there. The speaker of the poem lives in such a place, and she speaks on behalf of other kitchenette-dwellers as well. Notice that she begins with the word “we,” indicating that she is speaking on behalf of others who live in conditions just like hers. Notice also that she calls herself and others “things,” probably because that’s how other people see them – not as people but as things. “Fruitful” and an “involuntary plan” are almost contradictory. The speaker does not have a choice, so any kind of plan without choice seems rather pointless.

The opening stanza gives us a sense of the atmosphere: “dry hours,” are not fruitful just as a desert does not sustain life well. These people are “grayed in” and “gray.” Gray is a rather depressing color; there is not much “life” to it. And if one is “grayed in,” then again, there doesn’t seem to be much room for choice or growth. The atmosphere is very confining. The next phrase provides a rather sharp contract to the opening: “’Dream’ makes a giddy sound.” This is the point the speaker want to ponder. What chance does a dream have in an atmosphere like this? “Giddy” means frivolous, kind of silly or goofy. The word just doesn’t have the weight and seriousness, the speaker says, of words like “’rent,’ ‘feeding a wife,’ ‘satisfying a man.’” These are basic survival words, and basic survival takes all the time and energy of the people living in the kitchenette building. We can see the speaker’s question and the speaker’s problem. She lives in a depressing atmosphere and has few, if any choices. Yet she thinks of dreams and admits that having a dream in such a squalid environment seems rather frivolous.

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The second stanza shifts gears just a bit. Notice that this stanza starts with the word “But,” which indicates a change of mental directions. She asks a question to which she seems to already know the answer, but because dreams are such compelling things, she can’t help but wonder about it. She wonders if a dream could survive amidst “onion fumes and yesterday’s garbage ripening in the .” In other words, can a dream survive in an atmosphere that stinks? She imagines the dream fluttering and singing an aria, an image that sharply contrasts with the sickening garbage and the colorless . She is asking a question here, and that question carries over into the third stanza. Basically, she’s asking, could a fluttering, singing dream actually compete with the harsh reality of the kitchenette building and the lives of those who live there? “Even if,” she says, “we were willing to let it in,/ Had time to warm it, keep it very clean,/Anticipate a message, let it begin?” In other words, even if these people wanted to dream, the reality of the atmosphere would probably kill it. But the speaker at least asks the question, indicating that she would like to have a dream, would like to imagine a life beyond the depressing world that she knows. Transformation, after all, often begins with a dream.

But after she asks this question, she dismisses it. Though people like her may “wonder,” the reality is they don’t wonder for more than a minute because the more important reality of life takes over. She says she doesn’t wonder about dreams for long “Since Number Five is out of the now, We think of lukewarm water, hope to get in it.” For people who must share a bathroom with several other apartment dwellers, the biggest dream they have is to have some lukewarm water in the common bathtub.

I hope you will agree that this is a very sad poem. It is also typical of Brooks’ early poetry. She is writing about the life and the people that she knows: impoverished African Americans living on the Southside of Chicago. She does a wonderful job of evoking this place and also of providing insight into the minds of the people who live there. It is also a social protest poem, though it is not acerbic in tone. She makes us see the actual conditions of poverty, and we should, she hopes, feel the weight of the injustice of such conditions in the midst of an affluent society. If poverty can even kill dreams, what chance is there for those living in poverty to ever escape?

“The Mother” I want you to think about the following question as we go through this poem: Do you think the title of the poem is appropriate? And as you think about that, you should also think about the reasons for your response. Once again, be sure to follow along in your book as we read through this.

(Poem can be found among the reading materials for this course.)

The opening two lines tell us both the situation and the speaker’s problem: she has had more than one abortion, and she is haunted by her decision. She cannot forget. She obviously sees them not as terminated pregnancies, but as children. She also seems troubled by the paradoxical nature of their existence. She calls them “the children you got that you did not get.” In other words, she begot them but she did not actually “get” them. She has no actual children despite more than one pregnancy. She has harsh recollections of the details of her abortions, so she obviously saw the “damp small pulps with a little or with no hair.” And she imagines who they might have been as she calls them “singers and

Page 3 of 8 LIT 112: American Literature: 1945–Present Learning Unit 3: Audio workers that never handled the air.” Obviously, the speaker is quite troubled. She points out that she will “never neglect or beat/them.” Some people would say she is rationalizing her decision by saying this, but she also knows that she will never “silence or buy with a sweet.” She won’t, in other words, get to do the loving and nurturing things that mothers do as they are rearing their children.

The next stanza gives us a lot of insight into the way this woman thinks about her “missing” children: “You will never leave them controlling your luscious sigh, /Return for a snack of them with gobbling mother-eye.” This may sound like a strange metaphor to you, but I think that most parents would understand it. Just looking at your children is “luscious.” You “gobble” them up with your eyes. Some would say that only a mother (or father) would understand this feeling.

The next stanza takes us deeper into the speaker’s tortured soul. She tells us that she has “heard in the voices of the wind the voices of my dim killed children.” I want you to think about word choice here. She uses the term “killed children.” She doesn’t say “lost” or “departed” or some other euphemism that might soften the effect. Clearly, she feels a guilty sense of responsibility here. She then proceeds to speak directly to those children. She calls them “Sweets,” and she says that if she has stolen things from them, (such as their “names” and their “straight baby tears and [their] games,” she implies that she is deeply sorry. She wants them to know one thing very clearly. She says, “Believe that in my deliberateness I was not deliberate.” This is a rather paradoxical statement. (A paradox is something that seems to be contradictory but is true nevertheless.) How could she be both deliberate in what she did and yet not deliberate either? Think about it. Yes, she made a deliberate decision to abort these children, but she clearly seems not to have wanted to do that. Her motives were not “deliberate.” The speaker then asks a question: “Though why should I whine,/ whine that the crime was other than mine?—“ This line also provides insight into the speaker’s conflicted state of mind. She does not want to “whine,” (again, this seems to indicate that she takes responsibility), and she calls what happened a “crime.” (I should note here that this poem was written in 1945, and abortion was illegal in the US. It did not become legal until the Supreme Court decision, Roe vs. Wade, in 1973). But she does indicate that there was someone else who should share the responsibility “the crime was other than mine.” I want you to think about whether or not you think she is making rationalizations here as well. But though she is quite aware of what she has lost, the bottom line is that the children are dead: “since anyhow you are dead.” But her situation is complicated by the fact that “dead” is both accurate and inaccurate. Just as she stated at the beginning, the ambiguous nature of her children’s existence makes her grief even more problematic. How do you grieve children who never actually lived? She tries to define this for herself, but it doesn’t work very well: “Or rather, or instead,/ You were never made./ But that too, I am afraid/Is faulty: oh, what shall I say, how is the truth to be said?/ You were born, you had body, you died./ It is just that you never giggled or planned or cried.” At this point, I want you to think about how you feel about this woman. Does she have your sympathy? How do you feel about her? The speaker’s final pronouncement on the issue is a declaration of love: “Believe me I loved you all./ Believe me, I knew you, though faintly, and I loved, I loved you/All.”

With this overview in mind, I want you think about a few questions in relation to this poem:

1. Think about the title again. Do you think it is appropriate, or is it ironic?

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2. What do you think haunts the speaker the most? 3. Many see this poem as a process of self-realization for the speaker that she moves from rationalizations to true realization. What rationalizations does she give for her actions? What “true realizations” do you think she comes to? 4. In my introduction to Brooks, I said that while she usually portrays people who are oppressed in some way, she does not present them as victims. Do you think that is true of this poem?

“The Chicago Defender Sends a Man to Little Rock” You need some historical background to understand the main gist of this poem. First of all, The Chicago Defender was a newspaper in Chicago that focused primarily on African American news and issues. Gwendolyn Brooks once worked for them part time. So we know from the title that the basic situation here is that this Chicago newspaper has sent a reporter to Little Rock, Arkansas. The subtitle tells us that this occurs in the Fall of 1957. So you need to know what was going on in Little Rock, Arkansas in the fall of 1957. Please view the power point presentation, Little Rock 1957, before you listen to this portion.

The events in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1957 were both shocking and disgusting. In Brooks’ poetic examination of these events, she assumes the persona of a reporter sent to cover the events. Although it is not stated here, we can assume that the reporter is an African American. The newspaper’s editor has sent the reporter down to get the story behind these events. You can imagine what must have been going through the reporter’s mind. Approximately the first three-fourths of the poem give us a picture of the people in Little Rock. I want you to look closely at the lifestyle and the people portrayed. What kind of things do the people of Little Rock do? How would you describe their everyday lives? (Again, listen to the details that Brooks gives us). In fact, you might want to underline some of those details as you read along with me.

(Poem can be found among the reading materials for this course.)

If someone were to ask you, what are the people of Little Rock like, what would you say? Would you call them monsters? Would you think they were Neanderthals? Or would you say they were ordinary folks? I think we can safely say that Brooks is showing us a particular vision of these people. We are seeing what the reporter sees as he/she has gone down to cover this story.

But the last part of the poem takes a turn, and we see something else. Consider the following questions as you listen to the last part of the poem:

1. The reporter scratches her head in perplexity. She talks about the “hate-I had” (which means it is in the past tense). Why is the reporter puzzled and perplexed? Why is she unable to write down the story that she thought she would write? 2. I often tell students that the following line is very frightening: “The biggest News I do not dare/ Telegraph to the Editor’s chair: ‘They are like people everywhere.’” Why would I say this is a frightening line? Why would the reporter be reluctant to say this to her editor? 3. We get another picture of the people of Little Rock in this section. What, specifically, are they doing? Think about the contrast that Brooks has set up here. These are the same people who sit

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on their eating Lorna Doones and going to baseball games and concerts. Why is this contrast so important to the overall implication of the poem? 4. What do you think she means by “Lariat lynch-wish?” What could it mean in this context? 5. Think about the last line. In what ways was “our Lord” a “lynchee?” What are the implications of this comparison?

I think these questions will lead you in the right direction when thinking through this poem. I want you to be able to think through some poems a little more independently, and this is a good one to start with because it is not overly complex. Besides that, it’s a very interesting poem.

“Lovers of the Poor” Once again, as we read through this poem, I want you to think about the title. Is it accurate or ironic?

(Poem can be found among the reading materials for this course.)

I have to admit that this is one of my favorites of Brooks’ poetry. The first thing I want you to get a feel for is what is actually going on in the poem. Here’s what we know from the beginning: a group of women from the “Ladies Betterment League” have gone to an apartment building in the slums because “their guild is giving money to the poor.” They are upper class women with “proud seamed faces” who are “Sleek, tender-clad, fit, fiftyish.” They live in “Glencoe, Lake Forest,” which are very wealthy areas near Chicago. While at the apartment, they are appalled by what they see and smell. They didn’t know such conditions existed. When they see a rat, they leave the building and with the idea that “Perhaps the money can be posted,” and they leave trying “to avoid inhaling the laden air.”

The women from the Ladies’ Betterment League We need to examine the title characters of this poem. Understanding these women is vital to understanding this poem.

Paradox: They are complicated women. Brooks underscores their complexity by using several paradoxes in the poem. I want to list a few of these, and I want you to look for others. Here are some samples: “mercy and murder,” “innocence of fear,” “barbarously fair,” ”sweetly abortive,” loathe-love.” In many ways, her use of paradox is very appropriate because these women are paradoxical. There is much that seems contradictory about them, yet the seemingly contradictory elements in their characters are equally true. Perhaps this will make more sense was we examine them more fully.

First, let’s talk about their motives. Why would these wealthy, classy middle-aged women take it upon themselves to take some money to a slum? The speaker examines that their mothers had taught them: “You’d better not be cruel!/ You had better not throw stones upon the wrens!” In other words, they have been taught that they should be nice and kind, and that is what they are trying to do. They truly want to help people less fortunate than themselves.

Perceptions of the Poor: Like most people, these women seem to have some preconceived notions about “the poor.” They are expecting, the speaker days, “The worthy poor. The very very worthy/ And beautiful poor. Perhaps just not too swarthy?/ Perhaps just not too dirty nor too dim/ Nor – passionate.

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In truth, what they could wish/ Is – something less than derelict or dull./ Not staunch enough to stab, though, gaze for gaze!/ God shield them sharply from the beggar-bold!/ The noxious needy ones whose battle’s bald/ Nonetheless for being voiceless, hits one down.” It seems that these women have a very specific notion of what the poor should be like. They won’t clean poor people, not dirty ones. They don’t want poor people who will look you in the eye or who will show passions or boldness. I think they would prefer poor people who bow and scape before them, who avert their eyes in their presence. Do you see how shallow and ignorant such an attitude is? In other words, they do not want to see the full humanity of these people. So while their motives may be fine, their presuppositions are faulty. This is part of the paradoxical nature of these women.

The Environment Brooks goes into quite a bit of detail that allows us to see, hear, and smell this apartment. The first thing the women notice is “The stench; the urine, cabbage, and dead beans,/ Dead porridges of assorted dusty grains,/ the old smoke, heavy diapers, and, they’re told/ Something called chitterlings.” Obviously, the place stinks, and they had not anticipated this. They are also unprepared for the way the place looks: “The darkness. Drawn/Darkness, or dirty light. The soil that stirs./ The soil that looks the soil of centuries./ And for that matter the general oldness. Old/ Wood. Old marble. Old tile. Old old old./ Not homekind Oldness! Not Lake Forest, Glencoe./ Nothing is sturdy, nothing is majestic/ There is no quiet drama, no rubbed glaze, no/ Unkillable infirmity of such/ A tasteful turn as lately they have left,/ Glencoe, Lake Forest, and to which their cars/ Must presently restore them. When they’re done/ With dullards and distortions of this fistic/ Patience of the poor and put upon.” The women have never seen people living with such old, broken down surroundings. They know antique oldness, but they do not know the oldness of poverty. Brooks makes another interesting comment here. These women will be able to get in their cars and drive back to their rich neighborhoods when they are done. This section also reveals that they see the people here as “dullards.” I think we can say that is at odds with loving the poor.

They are also unprepared for the lifestyles of the inhabitants. These people use “Newspaper rugs” that are “tattered! And bespattered.” They are taken aback by a “substantial citizenness” who has “tumbling children” and “potato peelings” on the . A close look at the environment and the people who inhabit it leads them to think twice about their mission: “But to put their clean, their pretty money, to put? Their money collected from delicate rose-fingers/ Tipped with their hundred flawless rose-nails seems …” They just aren’t sure they want their clean money in dirty hands.

Brooks next provides a sharp contrast between the world of the ghetto-dwellers and the world these women inhabit. They live a life where they “own Spode, Lowestoft, candelabra,/Mantels, and hostess gowns” as well as many other things. These women “Winter in Palm Beach; cross the Water in June; attend/ When suitable, the nice Art Institute.” She lists several other details, but the point is clear. Though they may live only a car drive from this neighborhood, they practically live in a different world. When they see a rat, “The Ladies from the Ladies’/Betterment League agree it will be better/ To achieve the outer air that rights and steadies,/ To hide to a that does not holler, to ring/ Bells elsetime, better presently to cater/ To no more Possibilities, to get/ Away.” This is when they decide that maybe they can just mail some money so they don’t have to deal with the actual human beings inside the

Page 7 of 8 LIT 112: American Literature: 1945–Present Learning Unit 3: Audio building. Or “Perhaps they too may choose another slum!/ Some serious sooty half-unhappy ! – / Where loathe-love likelier may be invested.” And out they go.

Social Justice Though this poem does not overtly protest social injustice, it is clear that this is one of the themes. How, one might ask, is it possible to have such blatant economic disparity in an affluent country? How can human beings who live in rather close proximity to each other occupy such vastly different worlds? These are questions that Brooks raises by implication, though they are never stated directly.

Final Thoughts I want you to think about these women from the Ladies’ Betterment League again. How do you perceive them? Are they just rich witches who don’t want to get their clean hands dirty? Or are they more complicated than that? Gwendolyn Brooks was never one to oversimplify people or situations. That’s one of her best qualities as a poet.

© Rhonda Eakins and Indian Hills Community College

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