Editor's note
Ranking is generated by Storgy's classification model, which scores each poem's thematic depth on this subject relative to the rest of the corpus. The list is re-indexed weekly as new poems enter the public-domain corpus.
Best poems about — Storgy
Ambition.
Twenty-five poems, ranked.
25 of the finest public-domain poems about ambition, ranked by thematic depth. Scored by Storgy's classification model against the rest of the corpus, and re-indexed weekly as new works enter the canon.
The leading three
01
The Golden Hynde
Alfred Noyes · 1908
“Alfred Noyes's "The Golden Hynde" tells the exciting story of Sir Francis Drake's adventurous journey on his legendary ship, embodying the excitement of Elizabe…”
Open the poem
02
Hugh Selwyn Mauberley
Ezra Pound · 1920
“Hugh Selwyn Mauberley marks Ezra Pound's farewell to his early career and offers a sharp critique of modern Western culture. A poet who feels out of sync with h…”
Open the poem
03
The Man Who Discovered the Use of a Chair
Alfred Noyes · 1922
“A man is eager for fame and recognition, but no one seems to notice him—until he throws a chair at the Lord Mayor during an upscale dinner. The chair misses and…”
Open the poem
The complete index
- 04
The New Duckling
Alfred Noyes · 1922
A young duckling chooses to be completely different from what he was born as — he doesn’t want webbed feet, waddling, or quacking — and disregards all warnings about a fox lurking…
- 05
To a Successful Man
Alfred Noyes · 1922
A successful man lies dying (or dead), and the ghosts of his past confront him with a hard truth: everything he pursued — money, fame, status — cost him the simple joys that truly…
- 06
A Chamber in the Vatican
Percy Bysshe Shelley
This is the opening scene of Shelley's verse drama *The Cenci* (1819), set in Renaissance Rome. Giacomo Cenci tells Cardinal Camillo about his cruel father, who has left him broke…
- 07
Addressed to the Same
John Keats
Keats passionately names three influential creative figures—Wordsworth, Leigh Hunt, and Benjamin Haydon—referring to them as "great spirits" who are subtly transforming the world f…
- 08
A Dithyrambic
Horace
A Roman poet reaches out to Bacchus, the god of wine and inspiration, wondering where this divine frenzy will lead him. Caught up in the god's influence, he vows to create somethin…
- 09
A Fable for Critics
James Russell Lowell
*A Fable for Critics* is a long, comic poem where James Russell Lowell employs Apollo and various mythological figures to take a playful jab at the American literary scene of the 1…
- 10
A Fragment
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
A brief, urgent poem by Longfellow that jolts the reader awake and urges them to stop squandering time. He employs two vivid images — angels at the door and an athlete losing their…
- 11
Against Avarice and Luxury
Horace
Horace examines the relentless chase for wealth and luxury and concludes: it all means nothing, as death is impartial to both the poor and the rich. He juxtaposes his own simple, s…
- 12
A Garden of the Cenci Palace
Percy Bysshe Shelley
This is the opening scene of Shelley's verse drama *The Cenci*, which takes place in the garden of the Cenci palace in Rome. Beatrice, a young noblewoman stuck in a harsh household…
- 13
Aged 22
Amy Lowell
*Aged 22* is a set of three sonnets by Amy Lowell, each depicting a young man marked by loss, displacement, or unrealized potential. The first sonnet laments an unnamed young man w…
- 14
A Glance Behind the Curtain
James Russell Lowell
Two men — Oliver Cromwell and John Hampden — stand on a London pier in the 1630s, preparing to board a ship for the American colonies to escape King Charles I. However, Cromwell ch…
- 15
Agro Dolce
James Russell Lowell
A middle-aged man sits by his fireplace on a windy night, listening to the chimneys of his old house "talk" about the big dreams he had as a young man that never quite materialized…
- 16
Also St. John, with Some Gentlemen of the Inns of Court
Percy Bysshe Shelley
This scene from Shelley's unfinished play *Charles the First* unfolds in the court of King Charles I of England, just before the Civil War. The characters — King Charles, Queen Hen…
- 17
A New Edition
Walt Whitman
This piece isn't a traditional poem — it's a collection of prefaces or epigraphs that Whitman put together for a new edition of his work. He draws on quotes from figures like Miche…
- 18
An Horatian Ode upon Cromwell's Return from Ireland
Andrew Marvell
Written in 1650, this poem observes Oliver Cromwell returning from a harsh military campaign in Ireland and poses a challenging question: what does it mean when a man of immense, r…
- 19
Antiochus
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
In this dramatic monologue, the Seleucid king Antiochus IV expresses his deep longing for his cherished city of Antioch, proudly recounting how he reclaimed it and enhanced its spl…
- 20
A Psalm of Life
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
A Psalm of Life is Longfellow's invitation to stop dwelling on death and begin living with intention. He reminds us that life isn’t just a dream to drift through — it’s a struggle…
- 21
A Quiet Life
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
This poem explores the preference for a simple, quiet life instead of chasing fame, power, and public admiration. The speaker expresses contentment in staying home, observing the c…
- 22
At an Extrumpery Caucus in State Street, Reported by Mr. H. Biglow
James Russell Lowell
A fictional political speech, delivered in a thick New England dialect, by a corrupt Whig party insider who is furious that Congressman John Palfrey wouldn’t support the party’s pr…
- 23
A Third Letter from B. Sawin, Esq
James Russell Lowell
Birdofredum Sawin, a clumsy veteran of the Mexican-American War, writes home to explain why he’s stepping back from the presidential race and backing Zachary Taylor — mainly becaus…
- 24
Atropos
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
In this brief poem, the speaker calls out to Atropos — one of the three Fates in Greek mythology — urging her to stop luring a serious, forward-thinking individual and instead dire…
- 25
A Une Femme Ignorante
Sappho
A poet, channeling Sappho and endorsed by the muse Erato, mocks a woman who never chased after poetry or art, suggesting she will fade into obscurity. The poem juxtaposes this blan…
Read deeper