I agree with Brandon that the poem is full of sarcasm and irony. Brooks is talking about the life of dropouts everywhere, but most likely in the slums of the cities. Also, seeing that this poem was published in 1960 during the turbulent times of segregation and discrimination when schooling for African-Americans was extremely overlooked, undersupplied, and just pretty terrible, I think she is emphasizing the importance for blacks to stay in schools even though dropping out seemed so much better. The lives of dropouts might appear attractive at first but they come to a quick end.

I really enjoyed "We Real Cool" but it was a poem that represented my past situation. It was a brief and concise way of describing a fast life as Ranelle describes. This was a poem that was tricky to read, due to the organization of it. Having the "We" at the end of each line, made it hard to understand the flow until hearing it in class. With this being said, I think the interpretation of the poem can vary upon reading it. My take on the poem was a self-reflection of the pool player's decisions on life. I though the poem was being sarcastic. To end with "We die soon" was a perfect ending. It starts out upbeat, detailing a life of choices that the players seem unhappy with at the end. Having read the end, I probably would have had a more somber mood. When you live fast, it seems death's process seems to speed up as well. Then you end up wondering where the time that you wasted, indulging in those activities went.