Confidence-inspiring poems are dynamic, empowering, and uplifting. They speak of self-assurance, personal strength, and the courage to embrace one’s true self.
Using positive affirmations, striking imagery, and persuasive rhetoric, the poet explores the transformative power of self-belief. Such poetry serves as a rallying cry for inner strength and self-reliance, urging the reader to trust in their abilities and inspiring them to conquer their doubts.
‘Sonnet to a Negro in Harlem’ by Helene Johnson is a deeply affecting poem that lucidly attempts to uncover a man’s shortcomings alongside all that makes his superbly admirable.
You are disdainful and magnificent—
Your perfect body and your pompous gait,
Your dark eyes flashing solemnly with hate,
Small wonder that you are incompetent
‘The Present Crisis’ by James Russell Lowell is an anthem against slavery and, by extension, other racially-induced crimes. Penned in 1845 as a protest against the permission of slavery in Texas, this long poem now serves as a voice for all people of color who continue to face discrimination today.
Slavery, the earth-born Cyclops, fellest of the giant brood,
Sons of brutish Force and Darkness, who have drenched the earth with blood,
Famished in his self-made desert, blinded by our purer day,
Gropes in yet unblasted regions for his miserable prey;—
‘Fame is a bee’ by Emily Dickinson uses a bee to describe the fleeting nature of fame. She uses clever images and original poetic writing throughout.
Fame is a bee.
It has a song—
It has a sting—
‘I’m Nobody! Who are you?’ by Emily Dickinson reflects the poet’s emotions. It reveals her disdain for publicity and her preference for privacy.
I'm Nobody! Who are you?
Are you – Nobody – too? T
hen there's a pair of us!
Don't tell! they'd advertise – you know!
‘Each and All’ by Ralph Waldo Emerson depicts nature as interconnected and dependent on all other living and non-living things. The poet uses a few clever examples to demonstrate why he sees the world this way.
Little thinks, in the field, yon red-cloaked clown,
Of thee from the hill-top looking down;
The heifer that lows in the upland farm,
Far-heard, lows not thine ear to charm;
‘In Celebration of My Uterus’ by Anne Sexton is an uplifting poem about the meaning of womanhood. The poem explores Sexton’s perspective on feminine identity.
Sweet weight,
in celebration of the woman I am
and of the soul of the woman I am
and of the central creature and its delight
‘Life Sculpture’ by George Washington Doane is a poem heavily symbolic poem about realizing one’s true potential and purpose in life.
Chisel in hand stood a sculptor boy
With his marble block before him,
And his eyes lit up with a smile of joy,
As an angel-dream passed o’er him.
‘Tell the truth but tell it slant’ by Emily Dickinson is one of Dickinson’s best-loved poems. It explores an unknown “truth” that readers must interpret in their own way.
Tell all the truth but tell it slant —
Success in Circuit lies
Too bright for our infirm Delight
The Truth's superb surprise
‘The Red Hat’ by Rachel Hadas provides a poignant scene that captures the bittersweet experience of raising a child.
It started before Christmas. Now our son
officially walks to school alone.
Semi-alone, it's accurate to say:
I or his father track him on his way.
Many people consider ‘If—’ to be one of the most inspirational poems ever written. It is certainly a poem that has garnered a great deal of attention in popular culture.
If you can dream—and not make dreams your master;
If you can think—and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
In ‘A little Dog that wags his tail’ Emily Dickinson explores themes of human nature, the purpose of life, and freedom. She compares animals, cats and dogs, to adults and children.
A little Dog that wags his tail
And knows no other joy
Of such a little Dog am I
Reminded by a Boy
‘Do not go gentle into that good night’ is a powerful poem about how important it is, despite death’s inevitability, to fight against it until the bitter end.
Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
‘I’ll Open the Window’ is a passionate piece written by Anna Swir that offers a raw and natural post romantic breakup statement.
Our embrace lasted too long.
We loved right down to the bone.
I hear the bones grind, I see
our two skeletons.
In ‘Teddy Bear,’ the titular stuffed bear frets about his chubby body. A chance encounter with a plump passerby helps Teddy realize that fat men can still be held in high esteem, giving him newfound confidence about his appearance.
A bear, however hard he tries,
Grows tubby without exercise.
Our Teddy Bear is short and fat,
Which is not to be wondered at;
‘Still I Rise’ is an inspiring and emotional poem that’s based around Maya Angelou’s experiences as a Black woman in America. It encourages readers to love themselves fully and persevere in the face of every hardship.
You may write me down in history
With your bitter, twisted lies,
You may trod me in the very dirt
But still, like dust, I'll rise.
‘When I Was Prettiest in My Life’ by Ibaragi Noriko is a powerful poem written after World War II that explores the juxtaposition between beauty and war.
When I was prettiest in my life,
the cities crumbled down,
and the blue sky appeared
in the most unexpected places.
‘Double Dutch’ by Gregory Pardlo captures the vibrant energy and skillful artistry of girls playing the game with vivid imagery and rhythmic language.
The girls turning double-dutch
bob & weave like boxers pulling
punches, shadowing each other,
sparring across the slack cord
‘A Nation’s Strength’ by William Ralph Emerson asks readers to consider what it is that makes a country great and why countries fail.
What makes a nation's pillars high
And its foundations strong?
What makes it mighty to defy
The foes that round it throng?
‘Character of the Happy Warrior’ by William Wordsworth is a poem about what it means to be a “happy warrior” and what the elements of this kind of person’s life would be.
Who is the happy Warrior? Who is he
That every man in arms should wish to be?
—It is the generous Spirit, who, when brought
Among the tasks of real life, hath wrought
Upon the plan that pleased his boyish thought:
‘Phenomenal Woman’ by Maya Angelou defies the stereotypes women are often faced with today. It is a poem filled with strength and determination.
Pretty women wonder where my secret lies.
I’m not cute or built to suit a fashion model’s size
But when I start to tell them,
They think I’m telling lies.
‘Shut Not Your Doors to Me Proud Libraries’ by Walt Whitman is a poem about the imperative of a poet to share their art with the world for its benefit.
Shut not your doors to me, proud libraries,
For that which was lacking among you all, yet needed most, I bring;
A book I have made for your dear sake, O soldiers,
And for you, O soul of man, and you, love of comrades;
‘Star-Fix’ by Marilyn Nelson is a poem that lionizes the noble role of the navigator onboard an aircraft.
At his cramped desk under the astrodome, the navigator looks
thousands of light-years everywhere but down. He gets a celestial fix,
measuring head-winds; checking the log; plotting wind-speed,
altitude, drift in a circle of protractors, slide-rules, and pencils.
‘Grass will grow’ by Jonathan Kariara is a beautiful poem addressed to God and concerned with loss and a speaker’s reaction to it.
If you should take my child Lord
Give my hands strength to dig his grave
cover him with earth
Lord send a little rain
‘Self-Portrait in a Convex Mirror’ by John Ashbery manifests art’s struggle to capture the multifaceted self.
As Parmigianino did it, the right hand
Bigger than the head, thrust at the viewer
And swerving easily away, as though to protect
What it advertises. A few leaded panes, old beams,
“All You Have is A Country” by Ha Jin explores patriotism and how it can be negatively ingrained into someone’s personality.
You are so poor that all you have is a country.
Whenever you open your mouth
you talk about the country
to which you can no longer return.
‘Waiting’ by John Burroughs is an interesting, powerful poem written by a poet born in the mid-19th century. It asserts his, or a persona’s opinion about his fate.
Serene, I fold my hands and wait,
Nor care for wind, nor tide, nor sea;
I rave no more 'gainst time or fate,
For, lo! my own shall come to me.
‘Anne Rutledge’ by Edgar Lee Masters is an epitaph based on the life of someone who knew and loved Abraham Lincoln in her youth.
Out of me unworthy and unknown
The vibrations of deathless music;
“With malice toward none, with charity for all.”
Out of me the forgiveness of millions toward millions,
‘Because I could not stop for death,’ Dickinson’s best-known poem, is a depiction of one speaker’s journey into the afterlife with personified “Death” leading the way.
Because I could not stop for Death –
He kindly stopped for me –
The Carriage held but just Ourselves –
And Immortality.
‘O snail’ by Kobayashi Issa is a well-known poem that celebrates nature while also inspiring readers to take their time to overcome great obstacles.
O snail,
climb Mt. Fuji,
but slowly, slowly
‘The heart asks pleasure first’ by Emily Dickinson depicts the needs of the heart. They are highly changeable and include pleasure and excuse from pain.
The Heart asks Pleasure—first—
And then—Excuse from Pain—
And then—those little Anodynes
That deaden suffering—
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