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
freedom.
Twenty-five poems, ranked.
25 of the finest public-domain poems about freedom, 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
Sympathy
Paul Laurence Dunbar · 1899
“A caged bird sits amidst the beauty of the natural world it cannot touch, and Dunbar captures that feeling perfectly — the longing, the pain, and the fervent si…”
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02
A New National Anthem
Percy Bysshe Shelley
“A New National Anthem is Shelley’s bold reimagining of "God Save the King," where he replaces the monarch with Liberty as the genuine queen deserving of our pra…”
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03
Freedom
James Russell Lowell
“Lowell's "Freedom" poses a tough question: if we're surrounded by nature's wild, free spirit, why do we continue to act like slaves to our habits, comforts, and…”
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The complete index
- 04
Homage to My Hips
Lucille Clifton
Lucille Clifton embraces her hips as strong, liberated, and proudly hers—rejecting the notion that a Black woman's body ought to be small, restricted, or ashamed. The poem reads li…
- 05
Howl
Allen Ginsberg
Written in 1955 and published in 1956, "Howl" is Allen Ginsberg's powerful, lengthy poem that captures the struggles of a generation of brilliant yet troubled individuals torn apar…
- 06
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
Maya Angelou
A free bird and a caged bird sit side by side — one soars through the sky, while the other is confined by bars and can only sing about freedom. That song, filled with longing and f…
- 07
Let America Be America Again
Langston Hughes
Langston Hughes urges America to fulfill the dream it promised but has yet to deliver — particularly for Black Americans, poor whites, immigrants, and Native peoples. He shifts bet…
- 08
Liberty
Percy Bysshe Shelley
Shelley's "Liberty" begins with a barrage of violent natural imagery—volcanoes, typhoons, earthquakes, and lightning—before declaring that Liberty surpasses all these forces combin…
- 09
Lo, Victress on the Peaks
Walt Whitman
This poem captures Whitman's shout of triumph at the close of the American Civil War, directed toward Liberty herself. He envisions Liberty standing proudly on a mountaintop, havin…
- 10
Ode to Liberty
Percy Bysshe Shelley
Shelley's "Ode to Liberty" is an expansive tribute to human freedom, exploring its journey throughout history—from ancient Athens and Rome to the French Revolution and Napoleon, an…
- 11
On the Capture of Fugitive Slaves Near Washington
James Russell Lowell
Written in anger after the capture and forced return of escaped slaves near Washington D.C., this poem is James Russell Lowell's call for Americans to wake up and take action again…
- 12
Prometheus Unbound
Percy Bysshe Shelley
Prometheus Unbound is Shelley's epic lyrical drama centered on the Titan Prometheus, who is chained and tortured by Jupiter (Zeus) for bringing fire to humanity. Unlike the ancient…
- 13
Stanza from a Translation of the Marseillaise Hymn
Percy Bysshe Shelley
These two early poems by Shelley were composed during his teenage years. The first one is a passionate translation of a line from the French revolutionary anthem, urging the oppres…
- 14
Stanzas on Freedom
James Russell Lowell
Lowell's poem challenges every American who claims to be free: if you remain silent while others are enslaved, you share in their bondage. He contends that genuine freedom involves…
- 15
Still I Rise
Maya Angelou
Still I Rise is Maya Angelou's bold assertion that no amount of hatred, cruelty, or oppression can hold her — or, by extension, Black Americans — back. She layers vivid imagery of…
- 16
The Revolt of Islam
Percy Bysshe Shelley
The Revolt of Islam is an epic poem by Shelley that tells the story of two lovers, Laon and Cythna, who inspire a peaceful uprising against tyranny and religious oppression, only t…
- 17
The Slave's Dream
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
An enslaved man collapses in a rice field and, while unconscious, dreams of his life in Africa—his kingdom, his family, the wild animals, and the open land. The dream is so vivid a…
- 18
To the Republicans of North America
Percy Bysshe Shelley
Shelley writes to the republican revolutionaries in Latin America, encouraging them as they battle for freedom against corrupt kings and oppressive rulers. He envisions the volcano…
- 19
Turn O Libertad
Walt Whitman
Whitman crafts this short poem as a direct message to Liberty, urging her to stop dwelling on the past, including history, kings, and the wars that have already taken place, and in…
- 20
Hampden, Pym, Cromwell, His Daughter, and Young Sir Harry Vane
Percy Bysshe Shelley
This is a fragment from Shelley's unfinished verse drama about figures from the English Civil War—Hampden, Pym, Cromwell, and others—who choose to sail to America rather than endur…
- 21
Prometheus
James Russell Lowell
Prometheus, the Titan punished by being chained to a mountain for giving fire to humanity, confronts his oppressor Zeus (Jove) with unwavering defiance, foretelling the tyrant's ev…
- 22
The Commonweal
Algernon Charles Swinburne
This poem celebrates the 1887 anniversary of the Magna Carta (1215), highlighting that 672 years have gone by since England — "the land whose name is freedom" — was compelled to si…
- 23
Written on the Occasion of the Massacre at Manchester
Percy Bysshe Shelley
Written in a surge of anger after cavalry charged a peaceful crowd in Manchester in 1819, this poem by Shelley urges the working people of England to stand up against their oppress…
- 24
Hellas
Percy Bysshe Shelley
*Hellas* is a lyrical drama that Shelley penned in 1821 to support the Greek War of Independence against Ottoman rule. It envisions Turkish Sultan Mahmud II experiencing visions an…
- 25
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 Statue of Liberty a voic…
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