Reading Responses to a Poem - Essay Example

Brooks’ poetic style and substance complement each other in producing realist literary wonders, resulting in her being granted the Pulitzer Prize in 1950. It was possible that Brooks herself was influenced by her contemporaries when it comes to form and content (Hacker, n.d.). The point, however, is that when The Pool Players is detached from the consequence of such possibility or not, it is indeed a poem that could only come from poet laureate such as Brooks. Typical of modern poetry, The Pool Players does not use the classical poetic forms that can be attributed to the style of Romanticists.

Instead, its form and language is basically colloquial in nature. In just reading the poem, one would have the impression of youths who are just expressing themselves in the simplest language that they are accustomed to; no flowery descriptions, no use of symbolisms, and no adjectives to clarify further what they mean. However, the effectiveness of the poem in delivering its message is definitely achieved through the use of such language, coarse or crude it may sound for those whose usual impression of poetry is highly influenced by Romanticist ideals.

Brooks herself explained in an interview that the form or language used for the poem was not prompted by an objective related to literary aesthetics, such as colloquial rhythm. Therefore, it could not be attributed to any possible influence of modernist poets, such as Ezra Pound or T.S. Eliot (Stavros, 1970). Instead, it represented how Brooks actually felt about the subjects of her poem, young men or boys who did not believe in the importance of education in their lives and who would rather play pool or stay on the streets until death comes.

The effect of the poem on the reader is more profound though primarily because of the simplicity in the language used. The reader would easily get a picture of the scene that the poet wishes to portray. The language is very direct, allowing the reader to immediately get the image that poet wants to impart on the reader. However, it is also because of such characteristic that there is a tendency for the reader not to comprehend the deeper meaning behind the conversational verbiage applied. Ironically, this is the main problem with such kind of language and form.

Because it appears too simple, it may not encourage the reader to reflect on the meaning. The power of the poem lies in its informality; its simplicity is “stark to the point of elaborateness… it is virtually coded” (Spillers, 1987, p.225). By using the very language that the pool players themselves use, the reader is taken into the world that Brooks wants to portray. It is apparent that the poet believes that it is only through such method that reader is able to analyze the message and come up with his own impression on the issue being tackled.

The poem has eight lines but it is only on the last that the message is made clear but even this would not be understood without the prior seven lines. If the poem had been arranged in a non-lyrical manner, it would have appeared as commonplace as any conversation would be. However, Brooks made sure that even as she used simple language, The Pool Players is still able to uphold its aesthetic value as a literary work. Because of this,