Poetry & Analysis
Selected Poems
Inspirational PoemsLift Every Voice and Sing
Lift every voice and sing,
Till earth and heaven ring,
Ring with the harmonies of Liberty;
Let our rejoicing rise
High as the listening skies,
Let it resound loud as the rolling sea.
Sing a song full of the faith that the dark past has taught us,
Sing a song full of the hope that the present has brought us;
Facing the rising sun of our new day begun,
Let us march on till victory is won.
Stony the road we trod,
Bitter the chastening rod,
Felt in the days when hope unborn had died;
Yet with a steady beat,
Have not our weary feet
Come to the place for which our fathers sighed?
We have come over a way that with tears has been watered,
We have come, treading our path through the blood of the slaughtered,
Out from the gloomy past,
Till now we stand at last
Where the white gleam of our bright star is cast.
God of our weary years,
God of our silent tears,
Thou who hast brought us thus far on the way;
Thou who hast by Thy might
Led us into the light,
Keep us forever in the path, we pray.
Lest our feet stray from the places, our God, where we met Thee,
Lest our hearts, drunk with the wine of the world, we forget Thee;
Shadowed beneath Thy hand,
May we forever stand,
True to our God,
True to our native land.
Overview Short Summary
The poem moves from collective struggle to hope, faith, and a call for unity.
Performance Note Why It Works as Spoken Word
This piece should be delivered with a communal voice. Its repetition and rising rhythm make it suitable for spoken word poetry about society, hope, and shared history.
Core Ideas Main Themes
- Hope: A key idea that supports the poem’s spoken word impact.
- Community: A key idea that supports the poem’s spoken word impact.
- Freedom: A key idea that supports the poem’s spoken word impact.
O Captain! My Captain!
O Captain! my Captain! our fearful trip is done,
The ship has weathered every rack, the prize we sought is won,
The port is near, the bells I hear, the people all exulting,
While follow eyes the steady keel, the vessel grim and daring;
But O heart! heart! heart!
O the bleeding drops of red,
Where on the deck my Captain lies,
Fallen cold and dead.
O Captain! my Captain! rise up and hear the bells;
Rise up—for you the flag is flung—for you the bugle trills,
For you bouquets and ribboned wreaths—for you the shores a-crowding,
For you they call, the swaying mass, their eager faces turning;
Here Captain! dear father!
This arm beneath your head!
It is some dream that on the deck,
You’ve fallen cold and dead.
My Captain does not answer, his lips are pale and still,
My father does not feel my arm, he has no pulse nor will,
The ship is anchored safe and sound, its voyage closed and done,
From fearful trip the victor ship comes in with object won;
Exult O shores, and ring O bells!
But I with mournful tread,
Walk the deck my Captain lies,
Fallen cold and dead.
Overview Short Summary
The speaker celebrates victory while mourning the leader who has died before seeing the celebration.
Performance Note Why It Works as Spoken Word
The repeated address gives the poem dramatic energy. Speak the public celebration loudly, then soften the private grief.
Core Ideas Main Themes
- Grief: A key idea that supports the poem’s spoken word impact.
- Leadership: A key idea that supports the poem’s spoken word impact.
- Public and private emotion: A key idea that supports the poem’s spoken word impact.
I Hear America Singing
I hear America singing, the varied carols I hear,
Those of mechanics, each one singing his as it should be blithe and strong,
The carpenter singing his as he measures his plank or beam,
The mason singing his as he makes ready for work, or leaves off work,
The boatman singing what belongs to him in his boat, the deckhand singing on the steamboat deck,
The shoemaker singing as he sits on his bench, the hatter singing as he stands,
The wood-cutter’s song, the ploughboy’s on his way in the morning, or at noon intermission or at sundown,
The delicious singing of the mother, or of the young wife at work, or of the girl sewing or washing,
Each singing what belongs to him or her and to none else,
The day what belongs to the day—at night the party of young fellows, robust, friendly,
Singing with open mouths their strong melodious songs.
Overview Short Summary
The poem imagines ordinary workers and people as separate voices in a larger national song.
Performance Note Why It Works as Spoken Word
This is a useful spoken word poetry example for students because it can be performed as a list of voices, each with its own rhythm.
Core Ideas Main Themes
- Community: A key idea that supports the poem’s spoken word impact.
- Work: A key idea that supports the poem’s spoken word impact.
- Voice: A key idea that supports the poem’s spoken word impact.
Beat! Beat! Drums!
Beat! beat! drums!—blow! bugles! blow!
Through the windows—through doors—burst like a ruthless force,
Into the solemn church, and scatter the congregation,
Into the school where the scholar is studying;
Leave not the bridegroom quiet—no happiness must he have now with his bride,
Nor the peaceful farmer any peace, ploughing his field or gathering his grain,
So fierce you whirr and pound you drums—so shrill you bugles blow.
Beat! beat! drums!—blow! bugles! blow!
Over the traffic of cities—over the rumble of wheels in the streets;
Are beds prepared for sleepers at night in the houses? no sleepers must sleep in those beds,
No bargainers’ bargains by day—no brokers or speculators—would they continue?
Would the talkers be talking? would the singer attempt to sing?
Would the lawyer rise in the court to state his case before the judge?
Then rattle quicker, heavier drums—you bugles wilder blow.
Beat! beat! drums!—blow! bugles! blow!
Make no parley—stop for no expostulation,
Mind not the timid—mind not the weeper or prayer,
Mind not the old man beseeching the young man,
Let not the child’s voice be heard, nor the mother’s entreaties,
Make even the trestles to shake the dead where they lie awaiting the hearses,
So strong you thump O terrible drums—so loud you bugles blow.
Overview Short Summary
The poem presents war as a loud force that breaks into homes, schools, churches, streets, and private life.
Performance Note Why It Works as Spoken Word
This poem is built for sound. Repeat the opening command with force, then let the images show how public noise invades ordinary life.
Core Ideas Main Themes
- War: A key idea that supports the poem’s spoken word impact.
- Sound: A key idea that supports the poem’s spoken word impact.
- Disruption: A key idea that supports the poem’s spoken word impact.
The New Colossus
Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
‘Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!’ cries she
With silent lips. ‘Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!’
Overview Short Summary
The poem gives a welcoming voice to a statue and turns it into a symbol of refuge and hope.
Performance Note Why It Works as Spoken Word
Perform the final quoted lines as a public address. This makes the poem useful for spoken word poetry about society, belonging, and compassion.
Core Ideas Main Themes
- Welcome: A key idea that supports the poem’s spoken word impact.
- Hope: A key idea that supports the poem’s spoken word impact.
- Human dignity: A key idea that supports the poem’s spoken word impact.
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More selected reading from Inspirational Poems.
