Sunset of the City

“A Sunset of the City” Gwendolyn Brooks, “A Sunset of the City” is presents a depressing and mournful viewpoint of growing old. The poem begins as the narrator describes her appearance, as she is no longer viewed as beautiful or lovable. She goes on to describe that she is not in denial of her old age, though she is unhappy about it. Toward the end of the poem, the narrator discusses that she no longer feels needed, and contemplates whether to fade away slowly and miserably or to die. Old age is perceived negatively because people believe their lives will lose meaning -- they will be less loved, become undesirable, and lose their importance. Brooks use of imagery, metaphors and rhyming emphasize the narrator’s sadness and sorrow, as her old age haunts her. Brooks use of literacy devices contribute to the overall theme of the poem, with emphasis on imagery, metaphors and rhyming. In “A Sunset of the City”, imagery is used to describe the authors damaged appearance as she grows of old age. “The sweet flowers indrying and dying down/The grasses forgetting their blaze and consenting brown” (12-13). The narrator describing her self-worth through dried out, dead flowers. As flowers being to die, they lose their physical appearance and desirability, as does she. Imagery is also used to highlight the narrators sorrow as she no longer feel’s loved or of any importance. In the second line, Brooks conveys this lost love and low self worth through a comparison of the past and present: “My daughters and sons have put me away with marbles and dolls/Are gone from the house” (2-3). The narrator is being compared to marbles and dolls – toys that are a part of your childhood, and then forgotten about. The narrator no longer feels loved or needed by her children, as her role as a mother has lost its importance. Rhyming is used to stress the narrators overwhelming feelings of needlessness. “I am aware there is winter to heed/There is no warm house/That is fitted with my need” (16-18). The rhyming scheme stresses the narrators desire to be needed. There is no love left in her home, and there no longer lies any importance for her. The description of winter emphasizes the narrator’s loneliness and emptiness, as she feels emotionally detached from the world. Gwendolyn Brooks distinctive use of imagery, metaphors and rhyming conveys a heartbreaking theme of the negative connotations surrounding old age. Do lives lose meaning as we grow of old age? Gwendolyn Brooks “A Sunset of the City” depicts a picture in which they do. Through the use of imagery, metaphors and rhyming, Brooks presents a heart-rending story in which old age is associated with the loss of love, desire and importance. “A Sunset of the City” is a story that leaves the reader questioning the value and importance of their own lives. This poem is similar to her other works because it illustrates a tragic and heart-breaking story.

TP-CASTT WORKSHEET TITLE | -beautiful-watching the sun go down overlooking a city-peaceful-calm | PARAPHRASE | -No longer looked at with love
-Comparing herself to childhood toys – no longer needed/important-Aware of old age – “I am not deceived, I do not think it is still summer” – unhappy about it-Growing old, compares herself to dying flowers, loosing attractiveness-No need left for her – the house is cold and empty-Life has become routine – “I am woman, and dusty, standing among new affairs. I am woman who hurries through her prayers.”-Contemplates whether to continue living slowly and miserably or die “Whether to dry/In humming pallor or to leap and die” | CONNOTATION
(Poetic Devices Used) | (ON POEM SHEET) | Attitude/Tone
(Diction) | -Depressing, negative, heartbreaking “My daughters and sons have put me away with marbles and dolls/Are gone from the house”
”Whether to dry/In humming pallor or to leap and die”Critical: “already I am no longer looked at with lechery or love” | SHIFTS
-tone, time, place, narrator |
- change of seasons  Summer – Fall – Winter “It is summer-gone that I see, it is summer-gone”
”I am aware there is winter to heed”-consistent tone throughout poem | STRUCTURE | -Rhyming throughout poem Polite & Night, Thing & Sing, Down & Brown, Heed & Need, Affairs & Prayers | THEME
TITLE – interpretive meaning | |