Gwendolyn Brooks lived a long, distinguished life marked by her continuous devotion to writing the poetry of her people. Later in life she became a poet of social protest, joining in the principal currents of African-American poetry in the last third of the 20th century. Studied works include "The Mother," "The Bean Eaters," "We Real Cool," "Riot," "Queen of the Blues," and "Bronzeville Woman in a Red Hat."