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
Exile.
Twenty-five poems, ranked.
25 of the finest public-domain poems about exile, 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
1492
Emma Lazarus · 1883
“In 1492, Spain expelled its Jewish population through the Alhambra Decree, forcing hundreds of thousands to flee without a destination. Emma Lazarus reflects on…”
Open the poem
02
The New Colossus
Emma Lazarus · 1883
“A statue stands at the entrance to America, speaking not as a conqueror but as a mother welcoming the world's most desperate people. Emma Lazarus gives the Stat…”
Open the poem
03
The White Man's Burden
Rudyard Kipling · 1899
“Kipling's poem urges the United States to assume colonial control over the Philippines following the Spanish-American War of 1898, portraying imperial conquest…”
Open the poem
The complete index
- 04
The Wind Sleepers
H. D. · 1916
A restless group of spirits, swept along by the wind, calls on the living to construct an altar and offer songs to help them find peace. Forced from their natural home by the sea a…
- 05
I Shall Return
Claude McKay · 1920
Claude McKay's "I Shall Return" is a sonnet expressing a deep yearning to return to his homeland of Jamaica after being away for many years. The speaker recounts the sights, sounds…
- 06
Egypt
H. D. · 1924
H. D.'s "Egypt" brings the ancient world to life as a reflection of the speaker's inner experiences, using images of sand, stone, and timeless gods to delve into feelings of displa…
- 07
Sea Heroes
H. D. · 1924
A poet names ancient sea-heroes, mainly from Homer's Phaeacians, discovering that simply voicing these names can soothe feelings of grief and exile. The poem transitions from the o…
- 08
The Emigrée
Carol Rumens · 1993
Carol Rumens's "The Emigrée" is narrated by someone who left their hometown as a child and holds onto a vivid, unchanging memory of it—a memory that remains vibrant despite the tro…
- 09
Name Journeys
Raman Mundair · 2003
Raman Mundair's "Name Journeys" delves into the experience of having a name that crosses cultures, borders, and languages—examining how that name may be mispronounced, reshaped, or…
- 10
A Wider View
Seni Seneviratne · 2007
Seni Seneviratne's "A Wider View" explores the idea of stepping back from the immediate pain of personal and cultural displacement to gain a broader understanding of identity and b…
- 11
Acadia and the Acadians
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
This is a prose introduction by Longfellow, not a poem, but rather the historical preface he created to set the stage for his epic poem *Evangeline: A Tale of Acadie*. It recounts…
- 12
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…
- 13
A Jacobite's Exile
Algernon Charles Swinburne
A Jacobite soldier, exiled in France after the devastating loss at Culloden in 1746, longs for his home in Northumberland. He gazes at the French countryside, which he finds beauti…
- 14
A Jacobite's Farewell
Algernon Charles Swinburne
A Jacobite soldier, locked away after the failed 1715 uprising, bids farewell to the woman he loves on the eve of his execution. He urges her not to mourn over lost territories or…
- 15
Another Judge
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
This brief poem features one speaker who refuses to accept a decision, pointing out that exiled men—those who faced death if they returned—are now living back home without issue. T…
- 16
A Tale of Acadie
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
This is the opening of Longfellow's epic poem *Evangeline*, which narrates the tale of Acadian settlers who were forcibly taken from their homes in Nova Scotia by the British in 17…
- 17
At Tomis, in Bessarabia, Near the Mouths of the Danube
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
This poem is Longfellow's English translation of two elegies written by the Roman poet Ovid, who was exiled by Emperor Augustus to Tomis—a distant, icy outpost on the Black Sea. In…
- 18
By Francisco De Aldana
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
This poem envisions heaven as the soul's true home — a realm filled with pure light and truth, where the spirit is liberated from its fragile, suffering body. The speaker describes…
- 19
Canzone
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Longfellow's "Canzone" is essentially a collection-within-a-poem: a series of short titled pieces sourced from Portuguese, Eastern, Latin, and original texts, each delving into a u…
- 20
City without a Name
Czesław Miłosz
A reflective, meditative poem by Polish-American Nobel laureate Czesław Miłosz, "City without a Name" explores memories of Wilno (now Vilnius), the city of his youth, which has bee…
- 21
Dante
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Longfellow's sonnet envisions the medieval Italian poet Dante Alighieri traversing the dark spiritual realm of his own *Divine Comedy*, blending fearsome strength with profound hum…
- 22
Dedication, to Leigh Hunt, Esq
Percy Bysshe Shelley
Shelley pens a sincere dedication to his dear friend Leigh Hunt, celebrating Hunt's character and sharing his reasons for honoring him with this piece. He acknowledges that his pas…
- 23
Fragments Supposed to Be Parts of Otho
Percy Bysshe Shelley
This incomplete poem by Shelley conveys a deep desire to break free from the mundane world by soaring in a cloud-chariot across the sky, unbound by earthly constraints. It is part…
- 24
Frithiof’s Farewell
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Longfellow's "Frithiof's Farewell" translates a poignant moment from the Swedish epic *Frithiofs saga*, where the hero Frithiof bids farewell to his cherished homeland and the woma…
- 25
From the Original Draft of the Poem to William Shelley
Percy Bysshe Shelley
Shelley writes to his young son William about the experience of being exiles, searching for places where freedom and greatness still thrive in the world. He expresses that even in…
Read deeper