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Complete collection of poems from HSC English 1st Paper textbook
George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron, known simply as Lord Byron, was an English poet and peer. He was one of the leading figures of the Romantic movement and is regarded as one of the greatest English poets. He remains widely read and influential.
She walks in beauty, like the night Of cloudless climes and starry skies; And all that's best of dark and bright Meet in her aspect and her eyes; Thus mellowed to that tender light Which heaven to gaudy day denies.
One shade the more, one ray the less, Had half impaired the nameless grace Which waves in every raven tress, Or softly lightens o'er her face; Where thoughts serenely sweet express, How pure, how dear their dwelling-place.
And on that cheek, and o'er that brow, So soft, so calm, yet eloquent, The smiles that win, the tints that glow, But tell of days in goodness spent, A mind at peace with all below, A heart whose love is innocent!
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This poem is about a woman's exceptional beauty which reflects her inner goodness and grace. Byron associates her with night and starry skies. He simply wanted to celebrate her beauty. To give a description of her rare beauty, he uses cloudless climes, starry skies, her eyes, her face, her cheek, her brow, her smiles, her innocent heart and so on. The poem is a heartfelt celebration of both the woman's outer and inner beauty, emphasizing her serene and virtuous nature. Lord Byron's words resonate with admiration and reverence for this enchanting woman.
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Emily Elizabeth Dickinson was an American poet. Little-known during her life, she has since been regarded as one of the most important figures in American poetry. Dickinson was a recluse for most of her adult life, and her poems were unique for her era, containing short lines, unconventional capitalization and punctuation.
I died for beauty, but was scarce Adjusted in the tomb, When one who died for truth was lain In an adjoining room.
He questioned softly why I failed? "For beauty," I replied. "And I for truth,—the two are one; We brethren are," he said.
And so, as kinsmen met a night, We talked between the rooms, Until the moss had reached our lips, And covered up our names.
The poem is about an old and conventional idea about love and beauty. In the poem, we find two speakers lying in the adjacent graves. Both the speakers died for either beauty or truth. When the two softly told each other why they died, the man declared that truth and beauty are the same so that he and the speaker are ‘Brethren’. They met at night, ‘as kinsman’ and talked between their tombs until the moss reached their lips and covered up the names on their tombstones. Their deaths for noble causes make them spiritually akin. In fact, the poem gives an aesthetic impression of beauty.
Robert Burns, also known familiarly as Rabbie Burns, was a Scottish poet and lyricist. He is widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland and is celebrated worldwide. He is the best known of the poets who have written in the Scots language, although much of his writing is also in English.
Should old acquaintance be forgot, And never brought to mind? Should old acquaintance be forgot, And old lang syne?
(Chorus) For auld lang syne, my dear, For auld lang syne, We'll take a cup of kindness yet, For auld lang syne.
And surely you'll buy your pint cup! And surely I'll buy mine! And we'll take a cup o'kindness yet, For auld lang syne.
We two have run about the slopes, And picked the daisies fine; But we've wandered many aweary foot, Since auld lang syne.
We two have paddled in the stream, From morning sun till dine; But seas between us broad have roared Since auld lang syne.
And there's a hand my trusty friend! And give me a hand o' thine! And we'll take a right good-will draught, For auld lang syne.
The poem reflects on the importance of cherishing old friendship and shared memories. It begins by asking whether past relationships and experiences should be forgotten. The recurring chorus emphasizes the value of remembering "auld lang syne" (Scottish for "old long since" or "times gone by") and sharing a symbolic drink of kindness. The verses recall joyful times spent together—running through hills, picking daisies, and paddling streams—while acknowledging that time and distance have separated the friends. In the end, it calls for reunion and renewed goodwill with a handshake and another shared drink in honour of enduring friendship.
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Jibanananda Das was a Bengali poet, writer, novelist and essayist. He is considered one of the greatest poets in Bengali literature. Popularly called "Rupashi Banglar Kabi" (Poet of Beautiful Bengal), Das was known for his modernism in poetry. His works show a profound sense of history and a deep love for the natural beauty of Bengal.Born in Barisal to a Vaidya-Brahmo family, Das studied English literature at Presidency College, Kolkata and earned his MA from Calcutta University. He had a troubling career and suffered financial hardship throughout his life. He taught at many colleges but was never granted tenure. He settled in Kolkata after the partition of India. Das died on 22 October 1954, eight days after being hit by a tramcar. The witnesses said that though the tramcar whistled, he did not stop, and got struck. Some deem the accident as an attempt at suicide.
I Have Seen Bengal's Face
Because I have seen Bengal's face I will seek no more; The world has not anything more beautiful to show me. Waking up in darkness, gazing at the fig-tree, I behold Dawn's swallows roosting under huge umbrella-like leaves. I look around me And discover a leafy dome-Jam, Kanthal, Bat, Hijol and Aswatha trees All in a hush, shadowing clumps of cactus and zedoary bushes.
When long, long ago, Chand came in his honeycombed boat To a blue Hijal, Bat and Tamal shade near the Champa, he too sighted Bengal's incomparable beauty. One day, alas. In the Ganguri, On a raft, as the waning moon sank on the river's sandbanks, Behula too saw countless aswaths bats besides golden rice fields And heard the thrush's soft song. One day, arriving in Amara, Where gods held court, when she danced like a desolate wagtail, Bengal's rivers, fields, flowers, wailed like strings of bells on her feet.
বাংলার মুখ আমি দেখিয়াছি, তাই আমি পৃথিবীর রূপ খুঁজিতে যাই না আর : অন্ধকারে জেগে উঠে ডুমুরের গাছে চেয়ে দেখি ছাতার মতো বড় পাতাটির নিচে বসে আছে ভোরের দয়েলপাখি - চারিদিকে চেয়ে দেখি পল্লবের স্তূপ জাম-বট-কাঁঠালের-হিজলের-অশথের করে আছে চুপ; ফণীমনসার ঝোপে শটিবনে তাহাদের ছায়া পড়িয়াছে; মধুকর ডিঙা থেকে না জানি সে কবে চাঁদ চম্পার কাছে এমনই হিজল-বট-তমালের নীল ছায়া বাংলার অপরূপ রূপ
দেখেছিল; বেহুলাও একদিন গাঙুড়ের জলে ভেলা নিয়ে - কৃষ্ণা-দ্বাদশীর জোৎস্না যখন মরিয়া গেছে নদীর চড়ায় - সোনালি ধানের পাশে অসংখ্য অশ্বত্থ বট দেখেছিল, হায়, শ্যামার নরম গান শুনেছিল - একদিন অমরায় গিয়ে ছিন্ন খঞ্জনার মতো যখন সে নেচেছিল ইন্দ্রের সভায় বাংলার নদ-নদী-ভাঁটফুল ঘুঙুরের মতো তার কেঁদেছিল পায়।
In this poem, Jibanananda Das has shown the diverse beauty of the nature of Bangladesh. Here the poet says that he has seen the beautiful face of Bengal, a darling daughter of nature. So, he does not need to see any more beauty as the rest of the world has nothing more beautiful than that of Bengal. It is his strong belief that the beauty of Bangladesh is enchanting and perpetual. In this poem, he has shown the beauty of dawn, beauty of sunlight and the beauty of the showering light of the moon. Thus, the poet has beautifully drawn the alluring beauty of Bangladesh. While describing the beauty of the country, he has brought history, heritage, folk life in the poem.
William Carlos Williams was an American poet, writer, and physician closely associated with modernism and imagism. His work is known for its emphasis on everyday American life and speech, and its focus on vivid, concrete imagery. In addition to his writing, Williams had a long career as a physician practicing both pediatrics and general medicine.
According to Brueghel when Icarus fell it was spring
a farmer was ploughing his field the whole pageantry of the year was awake tingling
near the edge of the sea concerned with itself
sweating in the sun that melted the wings' wax
unsignificantly off the coast there was a splash quite unnoticed this was Icarus drowning
This poem is based on Pieter Bruegel's painting of the same name. Williams describes how Icarus's tragic fall goes unnoticed by the world around him - the farmer continues plowing, the seasons change, and life goes on. The poem comments on human indifference to individual suffering and the continuation of daily life despite personal tragedies.
David Herbert Lawrence was an English writer, poet, playwright, essayist, and literary critic. His works reflect on modernity, industrialization, sexuality, emotional health, and spontaneity. Lawrence is best known for his novels, including Sons and Lovers, The Rainbow, Women in Love, and Lady Chatterley's Lover, which was banned for obscenity.
All people dream, but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their mind, Wake in the morning to find that it was vanity.
But the dreamers of the day are dangerous people, For they dream their dreams with open eyes, And make them come true.
This short but powerful poem distinguishes between passive nighttime dreamers and active daytime dreamers. Lawrence suggests that those who dream while awake ("dreamers of the day") are more dangerous because they have the potential to turn their dreams into reality. The poem celebrates visionary thinking and the power of determined individuals to enact change.
James Mercer Langston Hughes was an American poet, social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist from Joplin, Missouri. He was one of the earliest innovators of the then-new literary art form called jazz poetry. Hughes is best known as a leader of the Harlem Renaissance and one of the major figures of African American literature.
Hold fast to dreams For if dreams die Life is a broken-winged bird That cannot fly.
Hold fast to dreams For when dreams go Life is a barren field Frozen with snow.
This short but powerful poem emphasizes the importance of dreams in giving life meaning. Hughes uses vivid metaphors (a broken-winged bird and a barren field) to illustrate how empty life becomes without dreams. Written during the Harlem Renaissance, the poem carries particular significance for African Americans striving for equality and fulfillment of their aspirations.
Robert Hayden was an American poet, essayist, and educator. He served as Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress (now called the US Poet Laureate) from 1976 to 1978, the first African American to hold that position. His works often addressed the plight of African Americans, usually incorporating his own personal experiences.
Sundays too my father got up early and put his clothes on in the blueblack cold, then with cracked hands that ached from labor in the weekday weather made banked fires blaze. No one ever thanked him.
I'd wake and hear the cold splintering, breaking. When the rooms were warm, he'd call, and slowly I would rise and dress, fearing the chronic angers of that house,
Speaking indifferently to him, who had driven out the cold and polished my good shoes as well. What did I know, what did I know of love's austere and lonely offices?
This poignant poem reflects on a father's silent love and sacrifice, recognized too late by his grown child. Hayden captures the complexity of family relationships, showing both the father's unacknowledged acts of love and the child's later regret for not appreciating them. The poem explores themes of memory, regret, and the often unspoken expressions of love within families.
Elizabeth Barrett Browning was an English poet of the Victorian era, popular in Britain and the United States during her lifetime. She began writing poetry at age 11. Her collection Poems (1844) brought her great success. Her Sonnets from the Portuguese, published in 1850, contains her famous Sonnet 43 ("How do I love thee? Let me count the ways").
How do I love thee? Let me count the ways. I love thee to the depth and breadth and height My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight For the ends of being and ideal grace. I love thee to the level of every day's Most quiet need, by sun and candle-light. I love thee freely, as men strive for right. I love thee purely, as they turn from praise.
I love thee with the passion put to use In my old griefs, and with my childhood's faith. I love thee with a love I seemed to lose With my lost saints. I love thee with the breath, Smiles, tears, of all my life; and, if God choose, I shall but love thee better after death.
This famous sonnet from "Sonnets from the Portuguese" enumerates the ways the speaker loves her beloved. Browning explores love in its various dimensions - physical, spiritual, emotional, and eternal. The poem moves from concrete measurements of love to abstract concepts, ultimately declaring that love transcends even death. It's considered one of the most famous love poems in English literature.
Maya Angelou was an American poet, memoirist, and civil rights activist. She published seven autobiographies, three books of essays, several books of poetry, and is credited with a list of plays, movies, and television shows spanning over 50 years. She received dozens of awards and more than 50 honorary degrees. Angelou is best known for her series of seven autobiographies, which focus on her childhood and early adult experiences.
Lying, thinking Last night How to find my soul a home Where water is not thirsty And bread loaf is not stone
I came up with one thing And I don't believe I'm wrong That nobody, But nobody Can make it out here alone.
Alone, all alone Nobody, but nobody Can make it out here alone.
There are some millionaires With money they can't use Their wives run round like banshees Their children sing the blues They've got expensive doctors To cure their hearts of stone. But nobody No, nobody Can make it out here alone.
Now if you listen closely I'll tell you what I know Storm clouds are gathering The wind is gonna blow The race of man is suffering And I can hear the moan, 'Cause nobody, But nobody Can make it out here alone.
Note: banshee (in Irish legend) a female spirit whose wailing warns of an impending death in a house
Note: sing the blues (melancholy, sad, or depressed)
This poem explores themes of loneliness and the universal human need for connection. Angelou reflects on the impossibility of self-sufficiency, suggesting that despite material wealth, people cannot thrive without human connection. The poem builds to a powerful conclusion about the necessity of community in facing life's challenges, particularly relevant to the African American experience.
Wystan Hugh Auden was an Anglo-American poet. Auden's poetry was noted for its stylistic and technical achievement, its engagement with politics, morals, love, and religion, and its variety in tone, form and content. He is best known for love poems such as "Funeral Blues," poems on political and social themes such as "September 1, 1939" and "The Shield of Achilles," and poems on cultural and psychological themes such as The Age of Anxiety.
I sit in one of the dives On Fifty-second Street Uncertain and afraid As the clever hopes expire
Of a low dishonest decade: Waves of anger and fear Circulate over the bright And darkened lands of the earth,
Obsessing our private lives; The unmentionable odour of death Offends the September night.
Written at the outbreak of World War II, this poem reflects on individualism, war, and human suffering. Auden examines the political and psychological climate that led to the war, critiquing both fascism and the failures of democracy. The poem moves from despair to a tentative hope for human connection and "an affirming flame" in dark times.
Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen is an American singer, songwriter, and musician. He has released 21 studio albums during a career spanning six decades. Nicknamed "The Boss," he is known for his poetic lyrics, working class persona, and energetic stage performances with the E Street Band. Springsteen's most famous albums include Born to Run, Born in the U.S.A., and The Ghost of Tom Joad.
Then Tom said "Ma, whenever ya seen cop beating guy Wherever a hungry new born baby cries Wherever there's a fight against the blood and hatred in the air For a decent job or a helping hand Look for me ma, I'll be there
Wherever somebody's struggling for a place to stand Wherever somebody is struggling to be free Look in their eyes ma, you'll see me"
And the highway is alive tonight Nobody's fooling nobody as to where it goes I'm sitting down here in the campfire light With the ghost of Tom Joad.
Inspired by John Steinbeck's "The Grapes of Wrath," this song addresses social injustice and economic hardship in modern America. Springsteen updates the story of Tom Joad for contemporary times, depicting the struggles of the homeless and dispossessed. The song critiques economic inequality while maintaining hope for collective action and solidarity among the oppressed.
George Herbert was a Welsh-born poet, orator, and priest of the Church of England. His poetry is associated with the writings of the metaphysical poets, and he is recognized as "one of the foremost British devotional lyricists." He was born into an artistic and wealthy family and largely raised in England. Herbert's poems have been characterized by a deep religious devotion, linguistic precision, metrical agility, and ingenious use of conceit.
Sweet Peace, where dost thou dwell? I humbly crave, Let me once know. I sought thee in a secret cave, And ask'd, if Peace were there, A hollow wind did seem to answer, No: Go seek elsewhere.
I did; and going did a rainbow note: Surely, thought I, This is the lace of Peace's coat: I will search out the matter. But while I looked the clouds immediately Did break and scatter.
Then went I to a garden and did spy A gallant flower, The crown-imperial: Sure, said I, Peace at the root must dwell. But when I digged, I saw a worm devour What showed so well.
At length I met a rev'rend good old man; Whom when for Peace
I did demand, he thus began: There was a Prince of old At Salem dwelt, who lived with good increase Of flock and fold.
He sweetly lived; yet sweetness did not save His life from foes. But after death out of his grave There sprang twelve stalks of wheat; Which many wond'ring at, got some of those To plant and set.
It prospered strangely, and did soon disperse Through all the earth: For they that taste it do rehearse That virtue lies therein; A secret virtue, bringing peace and mirth By flight of sin.
Take of this grain, which in my garden grows, And grows for you; Make bread of it: and that repose And peace, which ev'ry where With so much earnestness you do pursue, Is only there.
This religious allegory presents Peace as a personified figure that the speaker seeks throughout the world. Herbert uses the metaphor of a quest to explore the nature of true peace, ultimately suggesting that it comes only through Christ. The poem reflects Herbert's characteristic blend of metaphysical conceits and devotional themes, showing peace as both elusive and ultimately divine.
Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, author and visual artist. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career spanning more than 60 years. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s, when songs such as "Blowin' in the Wind" and "The Times They Are a-Changin'" became anthems for the civil rights and anti-war movements.
How many roads must a man walk down Before you call him a man? How many seas must a white dove sail Before she sleeps in the sand? Yes, and how many times must the cannonballs fly Before they're forever banned? The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind The answer is blowin' in the wind
Yes, and how many years must a mountain exist Before it is washed to the sea? Yes, and how many years can some people exist Before they're allowed to be free? Yes, and how many times can a man turn his head And pretend that he just doesn't see? The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind The answer is blowin' in the wind
Yes, and how many times must a man look up Before he can see the sky? Yes, and how many ears must one man have Before he can hear people cry? Yes, and how many deaths will it take 'til he knows That too many people have died? The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind The answer is blowin' in the wind
This iconic protest song poses rhetorical questions about peace, war, and freedom. Dylan challenges listeners to consider why humanity continues to tolerate injustice and violence when the solutions seem obvious ("blowin' in the wind"). The song became an anthem of the 1960s civil rights movement and remains relevant today, questioning when society will achieve true equality and peace.
Jayne Cortez was an American poet, performance artist, and small press publisher. Her work is associated with the Black Arts Movement and she is known for her forceful, militant, and radical poetry. Cortez's poetry is concerned with music and oral traditions, and her performances are highly theatrical, often featuring her own jazz band, the Firespitters.
A snow leopard does not know It's on the endangered species list Mr. & Mrs. Crab are not into to take in some rotten insects It's not what's up that's going down when you smell yourself on the threshold of extinction
It's you and your portable chemical toilet going to hell under friendly fire destroying the world they are crawling to the mud flats It's you and your missile receptor exploding to pieces
It's not what's up that's going down The person who OK's biological weapons should not cry about the stench of new diseases The one who cuts off the trees so the orangutans can't hang should not wonder about ecological devastation
It's not what's up that's going down It's what's down that's going up It's not what's up that's going down It's what's down that's going up
This powerful performance poem addresses environmental destruction and the loss of animal species. Cortez uses blues rhythms to lament ecological devastation while calling for action. The poem combines personal expression with political commentary, highlighting the interconnectedness of environmental issues and social justice. Cortez's characteristic blend of music and poetry creates a urgent, memorable warning about ecological crisis.
