What does the poem The Bean Eater mean by Brooks?

In Gwendolyn Brooks’s poem “The Bean Eater,” the speaker describes an elderly woman eating beans from a can. The woman is sitting alone at a table, and she is described as being “bent and old.” She is wearing a “shabby coat,” and her “face is lined.” The speaker notes that the woman is eating her beans “slowly,” and that she is “not chewing them.” The woman’s hands are described as being “knotted,” and her “veins stand out.” The speaker notes that the woman’s “eyes are glazed,” and that she is “not looking at anything.” The poem ends with the speaker asking, “What is she thinking about?”

The poem “The Bean Eater” is a powerful meditation on aging, poverty, and loneliness. The speaker’s description of the old woman is full of sympathy and compassion. The speaker notes the woman’s physical frailty, her poverty, and her loneliness, but she does not judge her. Instead, the speaker simply asks, “What is she thinking about?” This question suggests that the speaker is curious about the woman’s inner life. The speaker wants to know what is going on inside the woman’s head. The speaker wants to know what the woman is thinking about when she is eating her beans.

The poem “The Bean Eater” is a moving and thought-provoking meditation on the human condition. The poem reminds us that even the most ordinary of people have complex inner lives. The poem also reminds us that aging, poverty, and loneliness are all part of the human experience.