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Apr 8, 2020 · In this post, we gather together 33 of the very best short poems in the English language. All of the following poems qualify as ‘short poems’ because they’re (for the most part) not longer than a page in length – and in many cases, significantly shorter – and are classic poems in their field.
- ‘I wandered lonely as a cloud’ by William Wordsworth. The first poem on this list is one of the most popular and the easiest to love. ‘ I wandered lonely as a cloud,’ sometimes known as ‘Daffodils’ is a beautiful and uplifting poem that speaks about life, love, and happy memories in moments of despair.
- ‘Sonnet 18’ by William Shakespeare. Anyone, not just lovers of poetry, will likely know at least a few lines from ‘Sonnet 18’. Here are the first four
- ‘The Road Not Taken’ by Robert Frost. ‘The Road Not Taken’ is likely Frost’s most popular poem. He uses language that is easy to understand and relate to.
- ‘Death Be Not Proud’ by John Donne. This poem is also known as ‘Holy Sonnet 10’. In it, John personifies death and depicts “him” as something that we should not be afraid of.
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Sep 28, 2016 · In this post, we offer ten extremely short poems by American poets (i.e. no longer than 14 lines), as a way into the rich diversity of American verse produced since the nineteenth century.
- Fire and Ice by Robert Frost
- Hope by Emily Dickinson
- Do Not Stand at My Grave and Weep by Mary Elizabeth Frye
- Harlem by Langston Hughes
- Ozymandias by Shelley
- My Life Has Been The Poem I Would Have Writ by Henry David Thoreau
- Hug O’ War by Shel Silverstein
- Gitanjali 35 by Rabindranath Tagore
- In The Land of Words by Eloise Greenfield
- Believe This by Wilhelmina Stitch
Some say the world will end in fire, Some say in ice. From what I’ve tasted of desire I hold with those who favor fire. But if it had to perish twice, I think I know enough of hate To know that for destruction ice Is also great, And would suffice.
HOPE is the thing with feathers That perches in the soul, And sings the tune without the words, And never stops at all, And sweetest in the gale is heard; And sore must be the storm That could abash the little bird That kept so many warm. I’ve heard it in the chillest land, And on the strangest sea; Yet, never, in extremity, It asked a crumb of me.
Do not stand at my grave and weep: I am not there; I do not sleep. I am a thousand winds that blow, I am the diamond glints on snow, I am the sun on ripened grain, I am the gentle autumn rain. When you awaken in the morning’s hush I am the swift uplifting rush Of quiet birds in circling flight. I am the soft starshine at night. Do not stand at my g...
This poem, that you can read in its entirety here is one that has stayed with me from the first time I heard it. I wrote about it earlier here. In its first line, Hughes asks, “What happens to a dream deferred?” And as he ponders some more through the rest, the readers reflect on it too, until that memorable last line, “or does it explode?“
I met a traveller from an antique land Who said: “Two vast and trunkless legs of stone Stand in the desert. Near them, on the sand, Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown, And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command, Tell that its sculptor well those passions read Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things, The hand that mocked th...
Two lines; and they say so much. My life has been the poem I would have writ But I could not both live and utter it.
The poem starts with these smile-inducing, endearing lines. I remember clearly that it was a tough choice for one of my kids to make between this poem and one of his giggle-inducing poems like Lazy Jane I will not play at tug o’ war. I’d rather play at hug o’ war, You can read the complete poem here.
Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high; Where knowledge is free; Where the world has not been broken up into fragments by narrow domestic walls; Where words come out from the depth of truth; Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection; Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way into the dreary desert s...
When I first read this poem in Hip Hop Speaks to Children: A Celebration of Poetry With A Beat, I immediately read it all over again. It simply delights the logophile in me to be able to“let the words / rain down on me” You can read the poem in its entirety here.
You’re winning. You simply cannot fail. The only obstacle is doubt; There’s not a hill you cannot scale Once fear is put to rout. Don’t think defeat, don’t talk defeat, The word will rob you of your strength. “I will succeed,” This phrase repeat Throughout the journey’s length.
- A Dream. In visions of the dark night. I have dreamed of joy departed- But a waking dream of life and light. Hath left me broken-hearted.
- To Helen. Helen, thy beauty is to me. Like those Nicsean barks of yore. That gently, o'er a perfumed sea, The weary, wayworn wanderer bore.
- A Dream Within A Dream. Take this kiss upon the brow! And, in parting from you now, Thus much let me avow - You are not wrong, who deem.
- To The River. Fair river! in thy bright, clear flow. Of crystal, wandering water, Thou art an emblem of the glow. Of beauty - the unhidden heart
Apr 13, 2023 · Whether it’s poems about time, a love poem, or a metaphorical wonder, we have collected the most efficient and impressive poems to date; you’ll come to realise a short poem can also be a very deep poem! In celebration of that, we’re shining a light on some of the best famous short poems going.
Mar 14, 2024 · By Lauren Schenkman. Updated: Apr. 19, 2024. Appreciating poetry doesn't have to take a lot of time, as these moving short poems prove. RD.com, Getty Images. The beauty of short poems. Poetry...
