‘Patterns’ by Amy Lowell is an unforgettable poem about a woman’s loss during World War I. It describes the “patterns” of a speaker’s life and how, with the knowledge that her fiancé has died in the War, she’s doing to be confined to a far more sorrowful one.
‘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.
Adrienne Rich’s ‘Two Songs’ explores the themes of lust, physicality, and pleasure. These poems feature a speaker’s “post coitum” feelings.
‘The Sun Has Burst The Sky’ by Jenny Joseph uses hyperbolic images of nature to describe a speaker’s love for “you.” They suggest that incredible natural events occur because of the intensity of their love.
‘may i feel said he’ by E.E. Cummings is a deceptively complicated poem that describes two people engaged in an affair and the various emotions associated with it.
‘Advice to Women’ by Eunice de Souza is a clever poem that suggests women should own a cat in order to understand relationships.
‘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.
Jill Alexander Essbaum’s ‘The Heart’ is a short poem that dictates the intricacies of dealing with heartfelt emotions. It describes the human heart as a room with four chambers and thousands of doors.
Thomas Campion’s ‘Advice to a Girl’ is a piece of advice dedicated to 17th-century women regarding men’s nature and follies. It highlights some negative aspects in men that women should know before loving them.
Denise Levertov’s ‘The Poem Unwritten’ revolves around the extended metaphor for unconsummated love that is aptly portrayed in its very title. This piece fuses physicality with spiritual love.
‘The Rain’ by Robert Creeley is an interesting and memorable poem about love. The speaker compares it through an extended metaphor to rain.
‘The Clown’s Wife’ by John Agard explores the theme of duality through a wife speaking about her clown husband and herself.
‘I Want to Die While You Love Me’ by Georgia Douglas Johnson is a moving love poem. In it, the speaker addresses her desire to die before a love affair ends.
‘The Meeting’ by Katherine Mansfield is a short and image-rich poem that depicts a speaker’s reaction to a permanent separation from her lover.
‘Taking Off My Clothes’ by Carolyn Forché is a short, effective poem about a relationship. The speaker spends the lines uses imagery to define the various aspects of her partner and herself.
‘I’m a Fool to Love You’ by Cornelius Eady is a moving poem. It details the choices of a young black woman, the speaker’s mother, and why she did what she did.
‘Spare’ appears in The Penguin Anthology of 20th Century American Poetry edited by Rita Dove. This poem describes an unfulfilled love affair of a speaker and her feelings concerning the relationship.
‘Sonnet 117,’ also known as ‘Accuse me thus: that I have scanted all,’ is a poem that delves into the complexities of relationships. The poet’s speaker emphasizes everything he’s done wrong and makes use his beloved understands them all.
‘Friendship’ is about the love Henry David Thoreau and Ralph Waldo Emerson had for one another. This poem describes the nature of true devotion and how two souls are tied in a bond of love, goodness, and truthfulness.
Here is a list of 10 heart-to-heart poems from poets ranging from William Shakespeare, Dante Alighieri, Emily Dickinson, and Dylan Thomas. These poems explore the nature of love, heartache, and hearty emotions stored within.
On this list, readers will find ten of the best poems to read in celebration of father’s day. They explore themes of child/parent relationships, love, and generational wisdom.
‘Farewell, Ungrateful Traitor!’ by John Dryden swears off men and relationships. The speaker asserts that men are incapable of being truthful or loving as much as women.
‘Before the Birth of One of Her Children’ by Anne Bradstreet is a moving poem about a woman’s opinion on death. Inspired by her pregnancy, the speaker pens this epistolary to her husband.
‘Sonnet 125,’ also known as ‘Were’t ought to me I bore the canopy,’ is an expression of the speaker’s love for the Fair Youth. He declares the type of love he’s prepared to give and what he wants in return.
‘Sonnet 124,’ also known as ‘If my dear love were but the child of state,’ is a poem about the speaker’s superior love. It has withstood a great deal and will last the test of time.
‘Sonnet 120,’ also known as ‘That you were once unkind befriends me now,’ is one of several sonnets the speaker spends apologizing for his infidelity. He hopes their sins will cancel one another out.
‘Sonnet 119,’ also known as ‘What potions have I drunk of siren tears,’ is a complicated poem in which the speaker describes a relationship he had with a woman. He admits it was a mistake.
‘Sonnet 122,’ also known as ‘Thy gift, thy tables, are within my brain,’ explores the speaker’s rejection of a simple gift he received from the Youth. He explains it away through a return to his regular devoted attitude.
‘Sonnet 115,’ also known as ‘Those lines that I before have writ do lie,’ is a poem about the ever-maturing nature of the speaker’s love for the Fair Youth.
‘Sonnet 113,’ also known as ‘Since I left you, mine eye is in my mind,’ is a demonstration of Shakespeare’s speaker’s love for the Fair Youth. He sees him in every animal, plant, and landscape he encounters.