Poems List
Explore poems from our collection
XIV
XIV
If thou must love me, let it be for nought
Except for love's sake only. Do not say
'I love her for her smile--her look--her way
Of speaki…
XI
XI
And therefore if to love can be desert,
I am not all unworthy. Cheeks as pale
As these you see, and trembling knees that fail
To bear the …
VIII
VIII
What can I give thee back, O liberal
And princely giver, who hast brought the gold
And purple of thine heart, unstained, untold,
And lai…
Work And Contemplation
Work And Contemplation
The woman singeth at her spinning-wheel
A pleasant chant, ballad or barcarole;
She thinketh of her song, upon the whole,
Far…
VI
VI
Go from me. Yet I feel that I shall stand
Henceforward in thy shadow. Nevermore
Alone upon the threshold of my door
Of individual life, I …
To George Sand: A Recognition
To George Sand: A Recognition
TRUE genius, but true woman ! dost deny
The woman's nature with a manly scorn
And break away the gauds and armlets worn
To Flush, My Dog
To Flush, My Dog
Loving friend, the gift of one
Who her own true faith has run
Through thy lower nature,
Be my benediction said
With my…
The Weakest Thing
The Weakest Thing
Which is the weakest thing of all
Mine heart can ponder?
The sun, a little cloud can pall
With darkness yonder?
The cloud, …
The Runaway Slave at Pilgrim's Point
The Runaway Slave at Pilgrim's Point
I.
I stand on the mark beside the shore
Of the first white pilgrim's bended knee,
Where exile turned to ancest…
The Soul's Expression
The Soul's Expression
WITH stammering lips and insufficient sound
I strive and struggle to deliver right
That music of my nature, day and night
Wit…
The Look
The Look
The Saviour looked on Peter. Ay, no word,
No gesture of reproach; the Heavens serene
Though heavy with armed justice, did not lean
Their t…
The Poet And The Bird
The Poet And The Bird
Said a people to a poet---' Go out from among us straightway!
While we are thinking earthly things, thou singest of divine.
There's…
The Lady's Yes
The Lady's Yes
'Yes,' I answered you last night;
'No,' this morning, Sir, I say.
Colours seen by candlelight,
Will not look the same by day.
…
The Deserted Garden
The Deserted Garden
I mind me in the days departed,
How often underneath the sun
With childish bounds I used to run
To a garden long deserted…
The Best Thing in the World
The Best Thing in the World
What's the best thing in the world?
June-rose, by May-dew impearled;
Sweet south-wind, that means no rain;
Truth, not c…
Tears
Tears
THANK God, bless God, all ye who suffer not
More grief than ye can weep for. That is well--
That is light grieving ! lighter, none befell
Sonnets from the Portuguese iv
Sonnets from the Portuguese iv
IF thou must love me, let it be for naught
Except for love's sake only. Do not say,
'I love her for her smile--her look--h…
Stanzas on the Death of Lord Byron
Stanzas on the Death of Lord Byron
He was, and is not! Graecia's trembling shore,
Sighing through all her palmy groves, shall tell
That Harold's pilgrima…
Sonnet XXXVIII: First Time He Kissed Me
Sonnet XXXVIII: First Time He Kissed Me
First time he kissed me, he but only kissed
The finger of this hand wherewith I write;
And ever since, it grew mo…
Sonnets from the Portuguese ii
Sonnets from the Portuguese ii
UNLIKE are we, unlike, O princely Heart!
Unlike our uses and our destinies.
Our ministering two angels look surprise
Sonnet XXXVII: Pardon, Oh, Pardon
Sonnet XXXVII: Pardon, Oh, Pardon
Pardon, oh, pardon, that my soul should make,
Of all that strong divineness which I know
For thine and thee, an image o…
Sonnet XXXVI: When We Met First
Sonnet XXXVI: When We Met First
When we met first and loved, I did not build
Upon the event with marble. Could it mean
To last, a love set pendulous betw…
Sonnet XXXV: If I Leave All for Thee
Sonnet XXXV: If I Leave All for Thee
If I leave all for thee, wilt thou exchange
And be all to me? Shall I never miss
Home-talk and blessings and the com…
Sonnet XXXIX: Because Thou Hast the Power
Sonnet XXXIX: Because Thou Hast the Power
Because thou hast the power and own'st the grace
To look through and behind this mask of me
(Against which year…