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
Revenge.
Twenty-five poems, ranked.
25 of the finest public-domain poems about revenge, 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
Demeter
H. D. · 1921
“Demeter, the Greek goddess of the harvest, shares her feelings about being revered as a grand, heavy statue adorned with gold, while her daughter Persephone is…”
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02
Simaetha
H. D. · 1921
“A woman named Simaetha carries out a ritual spell, dyeing wool and burning herbs in an attempt to win back — or perhaps punish — a man who has hurt her. She flu…”
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03
The Night of the Lion
Alfred Noyes · 1922
“Written just before Britain declared war on Germany in August 1914, this poem envisions the British Empire as a mighty lion stirring from restless slumber in re…”
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The complete index
- 04
She Contrasts with Herself Hippolyta
H. D. · 1924
Hippolyta, the Amazon queen from Greek myth, contemplates her defeat by Theseus — not out of love, but through brute force — and the son, Hippolytus, born from that tumultuous unio…
- 05
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…
- 06
Adonais
Percy Bysshe Shelley
Adonais is Shelley's lengthy elegy for the poet John Keats, who passed away in Rome in 1821 at the young age of twenty-five. Shelley holds hostile critics responsible for shortenin…
- 07
Against Cassius Severus
Horace
Horace confronts a critic named Cassius Severus, labeling him a coward for going after easy targets rather than facing someone who can push back. He likens himself to a fierce guar…
- 08
Against Maevius
Horace
Horace unleashes a fierce storm upon a ship that’s transporting a man named Maevius, whom he clearly loathes. He hurls one curse after another—raging winds, shattered oars, terrifi…
- 09
A Hall of the Prison
Percy Bysshe Shelley
This is the final scene from Shelley's verse drama *The Cenci*, set in a prison where Beatrice Cenci and her family await execution for killing their abusive father. Beatrice shift…
- 10
An Apartment in the Castle
Percy Bysshe Shelley
This intense moment from Shelley's verse play *The Cenci* depicts Beatrice Cenci as she plots to kill her abusive father, Count Cenci. Just before the act, two hired assassins hesi…
- 11
An Apartment in the Castle of Petrella
Percy Bysshe Shelley
This scene from Shelley’s verse drama *The Cenci* depicts the monstrous Count Cenci as he schemes to ruin his daughter Beatrice—physically, mentally, and socially—while his wife Lu…
- 12
And Charlotte Corday
Percy Bysshe Shelley
A teenage Shelley envisions a stormy midnight scene where he almost succumbs to despair over the pain inflicted by tyrants. Suddenly, he finds himself in a heavenly realm where he…
- 13
An Elegy on the Death of John Keats,
Percy Bysshe Shelley
Adonais is Shelley’s lengthy elegy expressing sorrow for the death of fellow poet John Keats, who passed away in Rome in 1821 at the young age of 25. Shelley envisions Keats as a m…
- 14
An Ode, Written October, 1819,
Percy Bysshe Shelley
Shelley is crafting a battle cry for the Spanish people, calling them to stand against tyranny and fight for their freedom. He emphasizes that their suffering and the loss of their…
- 15
An Old Jew
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
An elderly Jewish man reprimands a group of children who are bothering him, using a powerful tale from the Hebrew Bible to send them a warning. He recounts how, when children made…
- 16
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…
- 17
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…
- 18
Audisne Haec Amphiarae, Sub Terram Abdite?
Percy Bysshe Shelley
This Latin epigraph is what Shelley selected for *Prometheus Unbound*, his renowned lyrical drama focusing on the Titan who challenges the gods. The title translates to "Do you hea…
- 19
Before the Castle of Petrella
Percy Bysshe Shelley
This is a tense moment from Shelley's verse play *The Cenci*, taking place on a castle's ramparts at midnight. Beatrice and her mother Lucretia are plotting the murder of Beatrice'…
- 20
Beowulf's Expedition to Heort
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
This poem tells the story of Beowulf and his fifteen warriors as they journey from Geatland to Denmark to assist King Hrothgar, whose kingdom is under threat from the monster Grend…
- 21
Black Art
Amiri Baraka
Written in 1965 during the peak of the Black Arts Movement, "Black Art" is Amiri Baraka's passionate manifesto-poem urging Black poetry to move beyond decoration and become a tool…
- 22
Canidia's Answer
Horace
A witch named Canidia gives an angry, triumphant speech to a man who ridiculed her dark rituals and exposed her secrets to the people of Rome. She informs him that no amount of ple…
- 23
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…
- 24
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…
- 25
Daddy
Sylvia Plath
Written in 1962, "Daddy" is Sylvia Plath's intense confrontation with her memories of her father, Otto Plath, who passed away when she was just eight. The speaker navigates through…
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