At times, current events, social media, and an unrelenting news cycle overshadow everything. For me, February is already a challenging month; for being so short, it’s always hard on my mental health. Despite this, I always teach through and come out the other side. For these reasons, I want to share 6 poems about hope.
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Poems About Hope
When I started to put this list together, “Hope is the thing with feathers” by Emily Dickinson instantly came to mind. I recently revisited The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver, and this poem is key for one of the main characters. Doves are often used as symbols of hope, but Dickinson never fully identifies the “thing with feathers that perches in the soul.” I find that ambiguity to be powerful and helpful; for me, there’s something poignant about hope not being a fully realized concept. Instead, it’s almost in a constant state of change. Read it here.
I often teacher Emily Dickinson alongside Walt Whitman, so “I Hear America Singing” also came to mind as I started putting together this collection of poems about hope. The repetition and parallelism in “I Hear America Singing” create a chorus of diverse voices, each singing for a better America. Somehow Whitman is able to be sentimental and frank in one poem. Read it here.
In addition to Dickinson and Whitman, William Cullen Bryant is also a staple in my American Romanticism unit. Oftentimes, an apple tree symbolizes temptation, but in “The Planting of the Apple-Tree,” it’s a symbol of hope. The poet plants and nurtures the tree, and as the nation grows, so does the tree. For me, this is an image of hope, but it’s also a labor of love. Building a nation takes incredible commitment, and how we continue to build and nurture our world requires critical thinking about what direction we want the “tree” to take. Read it here.
Poems About Courage
To my mind, poems about hope go hand-in-hand with poems about courage. Without hope, there is no reason for courage, and courage is hope in action.
First, “Invictus” by William Ernest Henley is not a happy poem, but it’s empowering and uplifting. After losing his leg to tuberculosis, Henley penned “Invictus.” Few images fill me with hope like Henley’s idea of an “unconquerable soul.” Read it here.
In my classroom, I often pair “Invictus” with “Courage” by Anne Sexton. In this poem, the speaker takes readers through all parts of life–from first steps to battle to loss and into death. At each turn, the speaker requires courage, but there’s also a sense of hope and the idea that readers will have the grace to move forward despite challenges. The third stanza in this poem focuses on loss, but even in that verse, pain and sorrow eventually wake “to the wings of roses,” an image that never fails to fill me with hope. Read it here.
Favorite Poems About Hope
Of the poems about hope, the one I love the most is “God’s Grandeur” by Gerard Manley Hopkins, my favorite poet. Hopkins’ wordplay attempts to capture “god’s grandeur,” and readers must feel his hope in every line. Despite the way humans have “trod” on God’s creation, Hopkins asserts that “nature is never spent.” In times of strife, this is an idea that provides comfort and hope. Read it here.
Finally, “The Summer Day” by Mary Oliver is a powerful poem of hope. This is also a poem that fits so well in different occasions: it works for spring, it works for celebrating graduation, and it works end-of-the-year reflection. Current events sometimes leave me feeling powerless, but the closing question in this poem is pure empowerment. Read it here.
It seems like we could all use some poems about hope. Please share the poems that invigorate, inspire, and empower you!
