To My Mistress Sitting by a River’s Side by Thomas Carew
‘To My Mistress Sitting by a River’s Side by Thomas Carew compares the relationship between two lovers to the actions of a stream, river, and eddy.
Places, Loved Ones by Philip Larkin
‘Places, Loved Ones’ by Philip Larkin is a poem about the complexities of marriages. No matter who the couple it, the relationship isn’t going to be perfect.
Dry-Point by Philip Larkin
‘Dry-Point’ by Philip Larkin is a poem about sexuality. It uses the image of a bubble to depict the pinnacle of one’s sexual longing
Piteous My Rhyme by Christina Rossetti
‘Piteous My Rhyme’ contains a speaker’s musings on the nature of love and the different forms, all immortal, that it can take.
An Apple Gathering by Christina Rossetti
‘An Apple Gathering’ is a first-person account of a woman who had a relationship before marriage and suffered the societal consquences.
Talking in Bed by Philip Larkin
‘Talking in Bed’ by Philip Larkin depicts the difficulties a speaker has talking in bed with his lover. It’s a poem about how loneliness can invade even the most initmate moments.
Love and a Question by Robert Frost
‘Love and a Question’ by Robert Frost is a curious poem in which a couple encounters a stranger. It brings up questions of what’s right and wrong, what’s too selfish, and what’s simply common sense.
Wild Oats by Philip Larkin
‘Wild Oats’ by Philip Larkin depicts the difficulties in a specific relationship he had with two women.
The Good-Morrow by John Donne
‘The Good-Morrow’ by John Donne is a sonnet that describes the perfect relationship in which a speaker and his lover exist.
Bright star, would I were stedfast as thou art by John Keats
‘Bright star, would I were stedfast as thou art’ is one of John Keats’ best-loved poems. It uses a star as an image of steadfastness in order to depict how true a lover’s heart is.
The Canonization by John Donne
‘The Canonization’ by John Donne describes a transcendent love that eventually evolves into the idealized baseline for all other aspiring lovers.
Love’s Language by Ella Wheeler Wilcox
‘Love’s Language’ by Ella Wheeler Wilcox describes how Love speaks through the emotions, actions and inactions of soon to be, or already established, lovers
Love by Samuel Taylor Coleridge
‘Love’ by Samuel Taylor Coleridge details the emotional and physical relationship between a speaker and the woman he woos through storytelling.
Every Day You Play by Pablo Neruda
‘Every Day You Play’ by Pablo Neruda describes the overwhelming love a speaker has for the listener and the way his life is improved by their relationship.
The Ghost by Sara Teasdale
‘The Ghost’ by Sara Teasdale describes a speaker’s unwelcome experience after reuniting with two ex-lovers in a city she used to know.
La Figlia Che Piange by T.S. Eliot
‘La Figlia Che Piange’ by T. S. Eliot describes a speaker’s attempt to craft the perfect, yet tragic, love story and his obsession with its completion.
Lullaby by W.H. Auden
‘Lullaby’ by W.H. Auden describes the love that one speaker has for his imperfect “beloved” and how that love will be enough to content them both.
Daybreak by Jack London
‘Daybreak’ by Jack London describes an interaction between a speaker and the woman he loves at the dawning of an especially beautiful day.
Thee, Thee, Only Thee by Thomas Moore
‘Thee, Thee, Only Thee’ by Thomas Moore describes the state of a speaker’s life as he uncontrollably obsesses over a woman he loves.
I Knew a Woman by Theodore Roethke
‘I Knew a Woman’ by Theodore Roethke describes a relationship between a devoted man and his lover, with whom he is completely obsessed.
To a Friend in Love with the Wrong Man Again by Stephen Dunn
‘To a Friend in Love with the Wrong Man Again’ by Stephen Dunn describes the ups and downs of love through the story of a digger wasp.
Song: to Celia by Ben Jonson
‘Song: to Celia’ by Ben Jonson describes the deep love which exists between the speaker and his lover and how it transcends normal bounds.
Fish Bouncing Kiss by Riyas Qurana
‘Fish Bouncing Kiss’ by Riyas Qurana describes a moment between lovers which contains hundreds of other memories retold beneath a tree.
The Broken Heart by William Barnes
‘The Broken Heart’ by William Barnes describes a kind and selfless Fanny whose heart was broken by a selfish and cruel man.
My Picture Left in Scotland by Ben Jonson
‘My Picture Left in Scotland’ by Ben Jonson is a humorous tale of rejection told from the perspective of a rejected would-be-lover.
Rosalind’s Madrigal by Thomas Lodge
‘Rosalind’s Madrigal’ by Thomas Lodge describes the intense love the speaker, Rosalind, feels, and how it moves within her like a bee.
Translation by Anne Spencer
“Translation” describes a spiritual journey undertaken by the speaker and her companion. She wonders at the transcence they encounter.
Reserve by Louise Imogen Guiney
‘Reserve’ by Louise Imogen Guiney tells of a man’s love for a listener to whom he has done some irreconcilable wrong.
To have without holding by Marge Piercy
‘To have without holding’ by Marge Piercy tells of a different way of loving that will take one high, and is without malice or angry moments.
The Indian Serenade by Percy Bysshe Shelley
‘The Indian Serenade’ by Percy Bysshe Shelley is a dreamlike, lyrical love poem told from the perspective of a desperate lover.