Octave poems are verses of eight lines, usually forming a single stanza. They can follow various rhyme schemes, such as ABBAABBA, ABABCDCD, or ABABBABA.
Octave poems are often used in sonnets, particularly in the Italian or Petrarchan sonnet, where the first eight lines (the octave) present a problem or situation that is then resolved or developed in the remaining six lines (the sestet). Octave poems offer poets a concise structure to convey their ideas, emotions, or narratives.
They can stand alone as complete poems or be combined with other stanzas to create longer works. Octave poems allow poets to explore diverse themes and experiment with rhyme and meter within a concise and structured form.
‘Little Boy Blue’ by Eugene Field is a beautiful, heartbreaking poem that describes the aftermath of a child’s death. It focuses on the child’s toys and how, despite many years having gone by, they’re still waiting for him.
The little toy dog is covered with dust,
But sturdy and staunch he stands;
The little toy soldier is red with rust,
And his musket molds in his hands.
‘Cuddle Doon’ by Alexander Anderson is a poem about a mother trying to persuade her children to go to sleep. It uses Scots dialect to convey the culture of the speaker and her family.
The bairnies cuddle doon at nicht
Wi muckle faught and din.
“Oh try an’ sleep, ye waukrife rogues,
Your faither’s comin’ in.”
‘Mr. Flood’s Party’ by Edwin Arlington Robinson describes a man’s later years in life and how lonely he has become. It suggests that a long life is not always a blessing.
Old Eben Flood, climbing alone one night
Over the hill between the town below
And the forsaken upland hermitage
That held as much as he should ever know
‘Dream Variations’ by Langston Hughes details two slightly different dreams a Black speaker has as he is confronted with the “white day.”
To fling my arms wide
In some place of the sun,
To whirl and to dance
Till the white day is done.
‘November Blue’ by Alice Meynell draws attention to the weather in November and what people do to make up for it.
O, Heavenly colour! London town
Has blurred it from her skies;
And hooded in an earthly brown,
Unheaven'd the city lies.
‘I Was Not False to Thee’ by Caroline Norton is a poem about loneliness and a speaker’s feelings of unequal treatment.
I was not false to thee, and yet
My cheek alone looked pale;
My weary eye was dim and wet,
My strength began to fail.
‘I Loved You’ by Alexander Pushkin is a simple but effective poem in which the speaker expresses his devotion and respect for a woman he loved.
I loved you: yet the love, maybe,
Has not extinguished in my heart;
But hence may not it trouble thee;
I do not want to make you sad.
‘The House by the Side of the Road’ by Sam Walter Foss was a once-popular American poem about caring for and helping other people.
There are hermit souls that live withdrawn
In the place of their self-content;
There are souls like stars, that dwell apart,
In a fellowless firmament;
‘Solitude’ by Ella Wheeler Wilcox describes the connection between one’s outlook on life and the friends and community one attracts.
Laugh, and the world laughs with you;
Weep, and you weep alone;
For the sad old earth must borrow its mirth,
But has trouble enough of its own.
‘Boy at the Window’ by Richard Wilbur is a short poem exploring an interaction between a boy and a snowman. Through this interaction, an omniscient persona reveals the meaning of childhood innocence and the power of empathy.
Seeing the snowman standing all alone
In dusk and cold is more than he can bear.
The small boy weeps to hear the wind prepare
A night of gnashings and enormous moan.
Edgar Albert Guest’s ‘Thanksgiving’ radiates familial warmth, intertwining laughter, gratitude, and time-honored traditions in shared gatherings.
Gettin’ together to smile an’ rejoice,
An’ eatin’ an’ laughin’ with folks of your choice;
An’ kissin’ the girls an’ declarin’ that they
Are growin’ more beautiful day after day;
‘A Prayer for my Daughter’ by William Butler Yeats speaks about the poet’s family. It demonstrates his concern and anxiety over the future wellbeing and prospects of his daughter, Anne.
I have walked and prayed for this young child an hour
And heard the sea-wind scream upon the tower,
And under the arches of the bridge, and scream
In the elms above the flooded stream;
Thomas Hardy’s ‘In a Wood’ explores disillusionment in nature as conflicts and rivalries undermine the speaker’s search for solace.
Pale beech and pine-tree blue,
Set in one clay,
Bough to bough cannot you
Bide out your day?
‘I Remember, I Remember’ by Thomas Hood is a poem dedicated to the nostalgic embrace of childhood memory. Hood idolizes his ‘childish ignorance’, painting his memories with beautiful colors and images.
I remember, I remember,
The house where I was born,
The little window where the sun
Came peeping in at morn;
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;
‘The Trial by Existence’ explores the paradox of bravery and the rewards of daring to face challenges in existence.
Even the bravest that are slain
Shall not dissemble their surprise
On waking to find valor reign,
Even as on earth, in paradise;
‘The Pumpkin’ by John Greenleaf Whittier celebrates the pumpkin’s beauty, nostalgia, and its power to evoke cherished memories and emotions.
Oh, greenly and fair in the lands of the sun,
The vines of the gourd and the rich melon run,
And the rock and the tree and the cottage enfold,
With broad leaves all greenness and blossoms all gold,
‘Vitaï Lampada’ contrasts cricket’s intensity with war’s chaos, urging courage and unity. Legacy of values endures.
There's a breathless hush in the Close to-night --
Ten to make and the match to win --
A bumping pitch and a blinding light,
An hour to play and the last man in.
Reed’s ‘I Feel it in the Air’ celebrates Easter’s spiritual essence interwoven with nature’s vibrant springtime rebirth.
I know it's Easter time again,
I feel it in the air.
The breath of spring with woodsy tang,
And new life everywhere.
‘Keep A-Goin’’ by Frank Lebby Stanton is a simple poem about the path one walks in life and what should happen if one runs into hardship.
Ef you strike a thorn or rose,
Keep a-goin'!
Ef it hails, or ef it snows,
Keep a-goin!
‘The Things that Are More Excellent’ by William Watson is a highly relatable poem that reminds readers to value the truly “excellent” things in life. One should not waste time on societal norms or acquiring material possessions.
As we wax older on this earth,
Till many a toy that charmed us seems
Emptied of beauty, stripped of worth,
And mean as dust and dead as dreams—
‘Each In His Own Tongue’ by William Herbert Carruth depicts the world and all its beauty and suffering, attributing the elements to evolution, longing, consecration, or God.
A fire mist and a planet,
A crystal and a cell,
A jellyfish and a saurian,
And caves where the cave men dwell;
In this game of life
your family is the court
and the ball is your heart.
No matter how good you are,
‘Christ of Everywhere’ by Henry Van Dyke is a poem about the presence of Christ in all living things. Throughout this piece, Van Dyke uses simple and relatable language that allows all readers to connect with his words.
‘Fragment’ by Angelina Weld Grimké is a short and powerful poem in which a woman discusses, in simple terms, who she is and how she toils on a day-to-day basis.
‘Identity’ by Abhimanyu Kumar is a relatable poem that explores themes of memory, identity, and personal history while inspiring readers to take control of their lives.
‘The Sugar-Plum Tree’ by Eugene Field is an image-rich poem that describes a colorful and entertaining dream world. It depicts a specific tree and how children can get sweets from its branches.
‘The Vagabond’ by Robert Louis Stevenson is a poem about one speaker’s desire to live a life close to nature and far from the rules of contemporary society.
‘Triolet’ by Robert Bridges is a short love poem that takes a specific poetic form. It acknowledges that love is a painful experience and personifies the force as a “hard master.”
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