Comparative Analysis: Friendship Themes in Poetry and Journal Articles

This essay provides a literary analysis of the theme of friendship, drawing on the poems "We Real Cool" by Gwendolyn Brooks and "Barbie Doll" by Marge Piercy, as well as several articles exploring the importance of friendships. The essay contrasts the portrayal of friendship in Brooks' poem, which depicts a rebellious group of pool players, with Piercy's poem, which addresses societal expectations and stereotypes. The essay further examines the value of friendships, especially for older people, and how they provide mental and emotional support, improve health, and contribute to a sense of belonging. The essay also highlights the voluntary nature of friendships and their significance in shaping individuals' lives. The author references several articles to support their arguments, including discussions of the benefits of friendships for mental health, self-esteem, and overall well-being.

Running head: FRIENDSHIP
FRIENDSHIP
Name of the student:
Name of the university:
Author Note:

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Part 1.
Gwendolyn Brooks in his poem “We Real Cool” portrays the bond of friendship
among seven rebellious pool players. Marge Piercy in her poem “Barbie Doll” however
portrays that the way girls are stereotyped in the society (Frisk 2019). In Brook’s poem, these
pool players are the young teenage boys who have the right to enjoy themselves indulging in
various illegal activities like drinking alcohol and fighting. In Piercy’s poem, the girl adjusts
herself and grow through the torments by facing all the criticisms regarding her body and
being forced to develop herself as per the norms to be an ideal beautified object. Brooks
wants to send the message that rebellion is always not healthy. The act of rebellion which
although may look golden and shiny but is a death trap like a shovel digging the own future
(Brooks, Cool and Hoffmann 2016). Marge wants to send the message on the grounds of
feminism that a girl should be given the right of self-expression and being herself, even it
demands to rebel against the society.

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Part 2
The article “Why Friends are more Important than Family” states that although people
find their solace in support and care from spouse, children and family members yet the
longing for good friends in lifetime especially by the older people are more important.
Having a friends who supports us mentally and emotionally feels better than the family
support, due to the notion of obligation of the family to care. The amount of personal space
and comfort ratio is more in terms of friendship than family and personal relations.
In the article “Friendships: Enrich your life and improve your health”, it is indicated
that friendships assist in a healthy lifestyle for people who suffers from depression and the
amount of stress in life get reduced through seeking advice. It helps in improving the self -
confidence and the habits of the life change into good practices with a mental and emotional
balance inside the people (Graber, Turner and Madill 2016). To nurture the friendships, it is
important to open up to the friends, increase availability and listen to others rather than
having egoistic behaviors.
In the article “The Importance of Friendship”, friendship is shown as the key of life
where we try to bond with people who are also similar like us in habits and values thereby
creating a intimate relationship sharing our dependencies (Kurth 2017). The friendship as it
gets old becomes a important part of life to maintain and hold a good memory at the end. The
friendship is voluntary in the sense that we pick those people with whom we want to share
our thoughts and feelings.
In the article “4 Reasons Friendships are so important” state that friendships are
necessary in life to motivate us and guide us through the path when we feel broken and suffer
in solitude. Friends provide us the support in the positive way and make us feel active
through collaboration of activities with them. The self-esteem of a person gets build up with
the healthy advice and nurture of bond from the close friends.

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References
Brooks, G., Cool, W.R. and Hofmann, B., 2016. Performing Poetry: Langston Hughes,“I,
too” and Gwendolyn Brooks,“We Real Cool”. In Performing Ethnicity, Performing Gender
(pp. 230-244). Routledge.
Frisk, P., 2019. Barbie Doll. Radical Teacher, (113), pp.29-122.
Graber, R., Turner, R. and Madill, A., 2016. Best friends and better coping: Facilitating
psychological resilience through boys’ and girls’ closest friendships. British Journal of
Psychology, 107(2), pp.338-358.
Kurth, S.B., 2017. Friendships and friendly relations. In Friendship As a Social Institution
(pp. 136-170). Routledge.