If you were coming in the Fall by Emily Dickinson
‘If you were coming in the Fall’ by Emily Dickinson is a meaningful poem about true love and a speaker’s willingness to wait for her lover to return.
A Wounded Deer—leaps highest by Emily Dickinson
‘A Wounded Deer—leaps highest’ by Emily Dickinson is a highly relatable poem that speaks about the difference between what someone or something looks like and the truth. She uses the examples of a fatally wounded deer and someone dying of tuberculosis.
A Woman Waits for Me by Walt Whitman
Formerly known as ‘Poem of Procreation,’ Whitman’s ‘A Woman Waits for Me’ is all about the power of regeneration, procreation, and creativity.
Earth Voices by Bliss Carman
‘Earth Voices’ by Bliss Carman is a clever poem that utilizes personification in order to convey the perspective of the sun, the wind, and the rain.
My God! O Let Me Call Thee Mine! by Anne Brontë
‘My God! O Let Me Call Thee Mine!’ by Anne Brontë is a prayer that takes the form of a poem. In it, the speaker makes their requests known to God, while reverencing him.
Rubaiyat XII: A Book of Verses underneath the Bough by Omar Khayyam
Quatrain XII from Edward FitzGerald’s famous translation, Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam, describes how “Wilderness” transforms into “Paradise” with love, poetry, and wine.
The Duel by Eugene Field
‘The Duel,’ one of the best-known poems of Eugene Field, tells the oddly amusing tale of the gingham dog and the calico cat.
Politics by William Butler Yeats
‘Politics’ by William Butler Yeats is the last lyric poem Yeats wrote. It alludes to wars around the world including World War II which was to begin the year after this poem was written.
The Chambered Nautilus by Oliver Wendell Holmes
‘The Chambered Nautilus’ by Oliver Wendell Holmes is an interesting and beautiful poem. In it, the poet describes the nautilus and the life of struggle and improvement it engages in.
Snow-flakes by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
‘Snow-flakes’ by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow is a graceful and melodic poem that describes a snowfall as the sky sharing and shedding its grief.
The Harvest Moon by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
‘The Harvest Moon’ by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow describes the way that the light of the harvest moon touches everything. It is an indication that fall is here and that winter is on its way.
Ten Little Soldiers (And Then There Were None)
‘Ten Little Soldiers’ was included in Agatha Christie’s classic mystery novel, ‘And Then There Were None.’ It iserves as an epigraph, appearing at the beginning of the book, and is connected with all ten deaths that occur on the island. It is unclear who wrote the first version of this nursery rhyme.
Gold! by Thomas Hood
‘Gold!’ by Thomas Hood is a piece about the corrupting nature of gold. It focuses on the duality of the substance. It can save but, it can also doom the person seeking it out.
The Wind by Robert Louis Stevenson
‘The Wind’ by Robert Louis Stevenson inquires into the nature of the wind. Stevenson uses a young speaker in order to adequately convey a child-like wonder of this common element.
Windy Nights by Robert Louis Stevenson
‘Windy Nights’ by Robert Louis Stevenson is a children’s poem about a nighttime storm. It was first published in 1885 in A Child’s Garden of Verses.
Freedom by Rabindranath Tagore
‘Freedom’ by Rabindranath Tagore is a powerful and effective poem about freedom. The speaker spends the seventeen lines of the poem describing the kind of freedom he hopes his country will find.
To a Stranger by Walt Whitman
‘To a Stranger’ by Walt Whitman describes a connection the speaker feels to a stranger they pass on the street.
The Hippopotamus by Hilaire Belloc
‘The Hippopotamus’ by Hilaire Belloc is an amusing short poem that describes shooting a hippopotamus with platinum bullets.
Change Upon Change by Elizabeth Barrett Browning
‘Change Upon Change’ by Elizabeth Barrett Browning is a poem about lost love and change. The poet depicts her internal changes through images of the changing seasons.
Vigil Strange I Kept on the Field one Night by Walt Whitman
‘Vigil Strange I Kept on the Field one Night’ by Walt Whitman is an emotional poem that describes a soldier’s night-time vigil alongside the body of his fallen comrade.
Broadway by Walt Whitman
‘Broadway’ by Walt Whitman is a short, effective poem that speaks to the nature of contemporary life. It focuses in on one street in New York City.
Horace to Leuconoe by Edwin Arlington Robinson
Edwin Arlington Robinson’s sonnet ‘Horace to Leuconoe’ is a passionate address of a lover to a girl, brooding over what God might have in store for her. He advises her to seize the moment and forget about the past and the future.
The Dalliance of the Eagles by Walt Whitman
Whitman’s ‘The Dalliance of the Eagles’ depicts a fierce yet amorous scene of the birds of prey, briefly consummating in the open sky and then parting in their own ways. This poem was not received favorably due to its explicit depiction of sexuality.
Spirits of the Dead by Edgar Allan Poe
‘Spirits of the Dead’ by Edgar Allan Poe is a beautiful poem that describes life and death. Specifically, the poet dwells on what it means to move from one world to the next.
Nuns Fret Not at Their Convent’s Narrow Room by William Wordsworth
‘Nuns Fret Not at Their Convent’s Narrow Room’ by William Wordsworth is a thoughtful poem that expresses the poet’s appreciation for his chosen path.
An Army Corps on the March by Walt Whitman
Whitman’s ‘An Army Corps on the March’ is a moving depiction of soldiers marching forward tirelessly during the Civil War. No matter how exhausted they were, they had a goal to fulfill and a dream to achieve!
On Seeing the Elgin Marbles by John Keats
‘On Seeing the Elgin Marbles’ by John Keats is a poem about mortality. The speaker observes the Elgin Marbles in the British Museum and is moved by their power.
I Years had been from Home by Emily Dickinson
‘I Years had been from Home’ by Emily Dickinson is a thoughtful poem that speaks to one’s perceptions and fears of change.
The Sower by Victor-Marie Hugo
‘The Sower’ by Victor-Marie Hugo reveals the musings of a poet persona as he observes an old sower working in his fields till night.
The Soul has Bandaged Moments by Emily Dickinson
‘The Soul has Bandaged Moments’ by Emily Dickinson is a powerful poem that explores the human soul. It uses personification skillfully to describe the “Soul” and “Fear.”
