swap_horiz Desiderata Alternatives

1

The Waste Land

T.S. Eliot’s “The Waste Land,” published in 1922, is a significant modernist poem exploring the disillusionment followin...

Lyric Modernist Classroom Poem

9.9 Brilliant

2

The Second Coming

W.B. Yeats’ “The Second Coming” is a seminal modernist poem published in 1919. It explores themes of societal collapse a...

Lyric Modernist Classroom Poem

9.7 Brilliant

3

Song of Myself

Walt Whitman’s “Song of Myself” is an expansive 1855 poem central to American literary history. It's notable for its inn...

Lyric Epic 19TH Century Poem

9.7 Brilliant

4

The Road Not Taken

Robert Frost’s “The Road Not Taken” examines a speaker contemplating a choice between similar paths in a wood. Published...

Lyric Modernist Classroom Poem

9.6 Brilliant

5

Sailing to Byzantium

W.B. Yeats’ “Sailing to Byzantium” is a 1928 lyric poem examining themes of aging and artistic aspiration. The work cont...

Lyric Philosophical Modernist Poem

9.6 Brilliant

6

Kubla Khan

Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s Kubla Khan explores themes of imagination and the subconscious through a vivid, dreamlike narr...

Lyric Romantic Classroom Poem

9.5 Brilliant

7

Because I could not stop for Death

Emily Dickinson’s “Because I could not stop for Death” explores themes of mortality through a carefully constructed meta...

Lyric 19TH Century Classroom Dickinson

9.5 Brilliant

8

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening

Robert Frost’s “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” is a renowned lyric poem published in 1923. It portrays a traveler...

Lyric Modernist Classroom Poem

9.4 Excellent

9

Fern Hill

Dylan Thomas’s ‘Fern Hill’ is a 1945 poem exploring the idyllic experiences of childhood on a Welsh farm. It uses rich i...

Nature Lyric Modernist Poem

9.4 Excellent

10

The Tyger

William Blake’s “The Tyger” explores profound questions about creation and destruction through vivid imagery. Published...

Lyric Romantic Classroom Poem

9.4 Excellent

11

Lines Written a Few Miles Above Tintern Abbey

William Wordsworth’s “Lines Written a Few Miles Above Tintern Abbey” explores the profound connection between individual...

Nature Lyric Romantic Poem

9.4 Excellent

12

Dover Beach

Matthew Arnold’s “Dover Beach” is a powerful lyric poem from 1867 exploring themes of loss and uncertainty. Set against...

Lyric Victorian Classroom Poem

9.4 Excellent

13

Howl

Allen Ginsberg’s “Howl” is a landmark 1956 poem central to the Beat Generation. It powerfully critiques mainstream Ameri...

Lyric Classroom Poem Beat Generation

9.4 Excellent

14

The Man in the Arena (Citizenship in a Republic)

Theodore Roosevelt’s “Man in the Arena” is a powerful address delivered at the Sorbonne in 1910. It champions courageous...

Inspirational 20TH Century Speech Ceremonial

9.4 Excellent

15

Elie Wiesel Nobel Peace Prize Acceptance Speech

Elie Wiesel’s 1986 Nobel Peace Prize address powerfully recounts his experiences as a Holocaust survivor. Delivered in O...

Inspirational 20TH Century Speech Memorial

9.4 Excellent

16

Auld Lang Syne

“Auld Lang Syne,” penned by Robert Burns in 1788, is a Scottish poem exploring themes of memory and friendship. Its endu...

Lyric 18TH Century Ceremonial Poem

9.4 Excellent

17

William Faulkner Nobel Banquet Speech

Faulkner’s 1950 Nobel Banquet Speech remains a significant work of literary thought. Delivered upon receiving the prize,...

Inspirational 20TH Century Speech Literary

9.3 Excellent

18

Diving into the Wreck

“Diving into the Wreck” is a powerful poem by Adrienne Rich exploring themes of feminist reclamation and historical reco...

Lyric Contemporary Feminist Poem

9.3 Excellent

19

Hope is the thing with feathers

Emily Dickinson’s “Hope is the thing with feathers” explores the enduring nature of optimism through a striking metaphor...

Inspirational Lyric 19TH Century Dickinson

9.2 Excellent

20

Ithaka

Ithaka by Cavafy explores themes of purpose and fulfillment through the retelling of Odysseus’s return to Ithaca. The po...

Lyric Philosophical 20TH Century Poem

9.1 Excellent