Poems about hell venture into the realm of darkness and explore the concept of spiritual suffering, punishment, or the existential dread associated with the idea of a hellish realm.
These poems often depict the anguish, torment, and despair experienced in such a place. They may delve into guilt, remorse, or the consequences of one’s actions. Poems about hell may use vivid imagery, metaphor, and symbolism to evoke a sense of terror and a confrontation with one’s deepest fears.
They can be contemplative, cautionary, or philosophical, prompting reflection on morality, redemption, and the human condition.
‘The Marriage of Heaven and Hell’ by William Blake explores the tension between opposing forces and the transformative power of embracing contradiction.
Rintrah roars and shakes his fires in the burdened air;
Hungry clouds swag on the deep.
Once meek, and in a perilous path,
The just man kept his course along
‘Amethyst Beads’ by Eavan Boland alludes to Greek mythology and the suffering of a child, Persephone, after she was separated from her mother, Demeter.
‘My life closed twice before its close’ by Emily Dickinson uses heartbreak as a metaphor for death. She also experiments with the meaning of “closure.”
My life closed twice before its close—
It yet remains to see
If Immortality unveil
A third event to me
‘The Hollow Men’ presents the hollow, degenerated, and disillusioned people dealing with their meaningless existence amidst the ruins of the postwar world.
We are the hollow men
We are the stuffed men
Leaning together
Headpiece filled with straw. Alas!
‘Holy Sonnet II’ by John Donne is the second in a series of religious sonnets that Donne is well-known for. This poem is directed to God and explores a speaker’s concerns about their fate.
As due by many titles I resign
Myself to thee, O God. First I was made
By Thee; and for Thee, and when I was decay’d
Thy blood bought that, the which before was Thine.
‘1968’ describes the aftermath of a raucous Hollywood party. Seidel works into this context a broader critique of sociopolitical realities.
A football spirals through the oyster glow
Of dawn dope and fog in L.A.’s
Bel Air, punted perfectly. The foot
That punted it is absolutely stoned.
‘Twas the old — road — through pain—’ by Emily Dickinson describes a woman’s path from life to death and her entrance into Heaven.
In Chambers bright —
Too out of sight — though —
For our hoarse Good Night —
To touch her Head!
‘Holy Sonnet IX’ by John Donne, also known by its first line ‘If poisonous minerals, and if that tree’ is one of several “Holy Sonnets” the poet composed during his lifetime. This particular poem focuses on a dispute between the speaker and God.
If poisonous minerals, and if that tree,
Whose fruit threw death on (else immortal) us,
If lecherous goats, if serpents envious
Cannot be damn'd, alas ! why should I be ?
‘I did not reach Thee’ by Emily Dickinson is a complex poem about a speaker’s journey through life. She expresses both optimism and hesitation in the face of her death and attempts to reach God.
I did not reach Thee
But my feet slip nearer every day
Three Rivers and a Hill to cross
‘Mad Girl’s Love Song’ by Sylvia Plath explores the truth of a relationship. The speaker wonders how deep and meaningful it really was.
"I shut my eyes and all the world drops dead;
I lift my lids and all is born again.
(I think I made you up inside my head.)
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