English Literature

Dudley Randalls Ballad of Birmingham, Gwendolyn Brooks We Real Cool, and Robert Frosts Mending Walls, are poems that talk about a persons understanding of life. This is seen through these poems theme, the authors approach and writing style, and the symbols used. By going through and analyzing these elements, an understanding that life is full of uncertainty and ambiguity is developed. These three poems show that life is often unpredictable, short, and ambiguous, and that it requires proper care, understanding, and appreciation from those who has it.

    The theme of a poem tells a lot about the message that it wishes to convey to the readers. All of these poems have the same theme, which is about the uncertainty and the ambiguity of life. This can be clearly seen in the situations depicted in each of the poems. In the Ballad of Birmingham, the uncertainty and ambiguity of life is shown by the child, who went to church instead of the streets because of the mothers urgings. The mother thought that her child would be much safer in the church rather than the streets, but because life is uncertain, she never knew that her child would die because she went to church. In the poem We Real Cool, the narrator talks about their groups mischief and coolness. Their arrogance and perhaps their disregard for the law defined being cool for them, but it inevitably shortens their life. Life is ambiguous because even though they were cool, they will die soon. In Mending Walls, the uncertainty and ambiguity of life is manifested by the author and his neighbors constant setting up of the wall, without knowing why theyre doing it. They dont know what theyre walling in or out, only that it will make good neighbors.

    Another point of comparison for these poems is the authors style of writing. In the Ballad of Birmingham, the author uses a first person narrative, with the mother as a speaker. By doing so, the poem is given a more personal appeal so that the audience can relate to the shock and grief of the mother when her child died. In We Real Cool, the author opts to begin each sentence with the word we, but in writing, it is placed at the end of each line. This gives a hint of doubt in each statement of coolness from the narrator, which is then affirmed by the final line, We die soon. In Mending Walls, the poem is written in blank verse, making it more conversational, more like the narrators personal account. By doing so, the readers are able to now more about what the narrator is talking about  he and his neighbor doesnt know why they had to build and maintain the wall.

    The last point of comparison is the symbolism in each of the poems. In the poem Ballad of Birmingham, the church symbolizes peace of mind of the mother. She thought that because her child went to church, nothing would happen. In We Real Cool, the vices mentioned by the narrator symbolize the shortening of their lives. Even though these vices symbolized their coolness, they are also endangering themselves thats why theyll die soon. Lastly, in Mending Walls, the wall symbolizes the unknown for both the narrator and his neighbor. They didnt know why they had to constantly rebuild it, but fears of what might happen if they dont. So they would just go on and rebuild it, without realizing why they really have to do so.

Indeed, these three poems show that life is often unpredictable, short, and ambiguous, and that it requires proper care, understanding, and appreciation from those who has it. These offers a lot to learn for the readers, making them realize what life is all about, as shown in each of these poems.