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
justice.
Twenty-five poems, ranked.
25 of the finest public-domain poems about justice, 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
Justice
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
“Longfellow's brief poem "Justice" reinterprets the Fall of Man from Genesis, presenting a pointed moral question: if God put the forbidden tree in the garden, h…”
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02
An Apartment in the Cenci Palace
Percy Bysshe Shelley
“This is the opening scene of Shelley's verse drama *The Cenci*, where we meet Count Cenci, a ruthless Roman nobleman who has just bribed the Pope to hide a murd…”
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03
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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The complete index
- 04
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…
- 05
Anti-Apis
James Russell Lowell
Lowell contends that human laws derive their value from the moral principles that inform them. When these laws uphold injustice—like American slavery, which he specifically address…
- 06
A Poem in Twelve Cantos
Percy Bysshe Shelley
*The Revolt of Islam* is an epic poem by Percy Bysshe Shelley that tells the story of two heroes, Laon and Cythna, who spearhead a peaceful revolution against tyranny in a fictiona…
- 07
A Tragedy in Five Acts
Percy Bysshe Shelley
*The Cenci* is Shelley's five-act verse tragedy centered on Beatrice Cenci, a young Roman noblewoman who orchestrated the murder of her father, Count Francesco Cenci, in 1599, afte…
- 08
Ballad of the Landlord
Langston Hughes
A Black tenant confronts his landlord, insisting on repairs for a leaking roof and broken steps, even threatening to withhold rent. In response, he finds himself arrested, jailed,…
- 09
Chorus of the Eumenides
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
This poem portrays the Eumenides — the ancient Greek goddesses of vengeance — cautioning that divine secrets should remain unspoken, as the gods will pursue anyone who dares to bre…
- 10
Christison
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
This brief poem delivers a powerful warning from a character named Christison, who insists that the killing of innocent people must end. The speaker calls on God's justice, declari…
- 11
Enter Cenci, Lucretia, Beatrice, Orsino, Camillo, Nobles
Percy Bysshe Shelley
This scene from Shelley's verse drama *The Cenci* depicts the monstrous Count Cenci throwing a banquet to celebrate the deaths of two of his own sons, shocking his guests and promp…
- 12
Eve's Apology in Defense of Women
Aemilia Lanyer
Aemilia Lanyer's poem contends that Eve shouldn't carry all the blame for the Fall in the Garden of Eden. This perspective suggests that women throughout history have been unjustly…
- 13
Inferno
Dante Alighieri
Inferno is the first part of Dante's epic poem, The Divine Comedy, which he wrote in the early 14th century. Dante, the pilgrim, journeys through the nine circles of Hell, guided b…
- 14
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…
- 15
Lines Written During the Castlereagh Administration
Percy Bysshe Shelley
Shelley penned this intense, brief poem as a sharp critique of the British government led by Viscount Castlereagh, whose policies he believed were suffocating the freedom of everyd…
- 16
One of the Judges
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
A speaker highlights the dismissive reasoning of those before us—people who dismissed divine judgment simply because it hadn't affected them yet. In just three lines, Longfellow re…
- 17
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…
- 18
On the Death of Charles Turner Torrey
James Russell Lowell
This poem serves as both a lament and a rallying cry for Charles Turner Torrey, an abolitionist who died in a Maryland prison in 1846 after being convicted for aiding enslaved indi…
- 19
Retribution
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
This two-line poem conveys a strong message: divine justice might take its time, but it is completely comprehensive — nothing can evade it. Longfellow suggests that God's punishmen…
- 20
Song to the Men of England
Percy Bysshe Shelley
Shelley poses a straightforward yet passionate question to the working men of England: why are you putting in all the hard work while the wealthy reap the benefits of what you prod…
- 21
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…
- 22
St. Michael the Weigher
James Russell Lowell
An angel named Michael balances all of humanity's history on a giant scale — on one side, the brilliant achievements of civilization (empires, art, science), and on the other, the…
- 23
The Bell of Atri
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
A king in the Italian town of Atri hangs a bell in the market square to allow anyone who has been wronged to ring it and seek justice. When the rope eventually rots and is replaced…
- 24
The Black Christ
Countee Cullen
A young Black man in the American South is lynched by a white mob, and his brother — the narrator of the poem — watches in horror and grief, only to see what he interprets as a mir…
- 25
The Cenci
Percy Bysshe Shelley
*The Cenci* is a five-act verse drama by Shelley that tells the story of a real sixteenth-century Roman nobleman, Count Francesco Cenci. He abuses his family so horrifically that h…
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