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
Rose.
Twenty-five poems, ranked.
25 of the finest public-domain poems about rose, 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
A Red, Red Rose
Robert Burns · 1794
“A speaker shares with the person he loves that his feelings are as vibrant and lovely as a blooming rose and as sweet as a well-played melody. He vows that his…”
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02
Sea Rose
H. D. · 1916
“A small, weathered rose growing on a beach is compared to a flawless, well-tended garden rose — and the rugged beach rose comes out on top. H.D. suggests that b…”
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03
La Rose
Sappho
“This poem serves as a love letter to the rose, elevating it to queen of all flowers and a living symbol of beauty, love, and pleasure. Sappho (or a poet inspire…”
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The complete index
- 04
Sick Rose
William Blake
A rose is being eaten away by an unseen worm that has slipped in during the dark and stormy night. Blake uses the rose and the worm to illustrate how something lovely and vibrant c…
- 05
The Sick Rose
William Blake
A worm sneaks in at night and secretly devours a rose, leading to its destruction. Blake uses the rose and the worm as symbols for something much larger: how hidden, corrupt desire…
- 06
_To a Friend who sent me some Roses._
John Keats
Keats is strolling through the fields when he notices a wild musk-rose, which he considers the most stunning flower in nature. Later, his friend Wells sends him some garden roses,…
- 07
To Rodon
Sappho
Sappho's "To the Rose" is a brief hymn celebrating the rose, posing the question: if Zeus were to crown a king of all flowers, wouldn't the rose be the obvious choice? The poem acc…
- 08
The Rose Family
Robert Frost · 1928
A rose is a rose — that's common knowledge. Yet, modern botany reveals that apples, pears, and plums are also part of the rose family, making this seemingly straightforward fact a…
- 09
iz'
Sappho
Sappho elevates the rose to the status of queen among flowers, calling it the earth's ornament, the eye of the meadow, and a vibrant connection to Aphrodite and desire. Each detail…
- 10
The Token
James Russell Lowell
A dried, faded rosebud opens a doorway to the past — a small object that triggers powerful memories and emotions, far surpassing any fleeting joy. Lowell uses the rose to suggest t…
- 11
Garden
H. D. · 1916
H. D.'s "Garden" is a two-part poem that captures the feeling of being stuck in oppressive summer heat. In the first part, the speaker gazes at a rose that is so vivid and solid it…
- 12
Night
H. D. · 1921
Night acts like a destructive force, pulling the petals off a rose one by one until only the bare, dying stem remains. H. D. uses this imagery to convey a deeper message: night doe…
- 13
The Wind
Eugene Field
A wind approaches a narrator and reveals its deep love for the Rose, only to return later in winter, heartbroken, to grieve her passing. The poem alternates between "tale" sections…
- 14
Translated by Medwin and Corrected by Shelley
Percy Bysshe Shelley
A speaker observes a bee nervously circling a rose and a moth flying dangerously into a candle flame. He then confesses that his own heart acted similarly, hovering anxiously aroun…
- 15
Love and Friendship
Emily Brontë
Emily Brontë's "Love and Friendship" juxtaposes two emotional forces by likening love to a wild rose and friendship to a holly tree. The rose flourishes vibrantly in summer but wit…
- 16
Snow
Louis MacNeice
"Snow" presents a striking moment where the poet sits by a window, observing snow falling outside while roses bloom indoors. This juxtaposition highlights the astonishing differenc…
- 17
Through Laughter, Through the Roses, as of Old
Rupert Brooke
This collection features early poems by Rupert Brooke, primarily written from 1905 to 1911, before he gained fame for his war sonnets. The poems explore themes of love, death, beau…
- 18
June
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
June speaks for herself, sharing all the lovely things she has — roses, weddings, long days, sweet nights, and the sound of a scythe cutting grass. It comes off as a bit of braggin…
- 19
Sun-Worship
James Russell Lowell
A brief, charming poem where the speaker envisions themselves as a rosebush outside their loved one's window. Each flower would lean toward the room, drawn to the true light that r…
- 20
The Sweetness of Life
Archibald Lampman
A man experiences a sudden wave of happiness one day and turns to the natural world around him — the meadow, the roses, the shadow, the brook — asking why everything feels so joyfu…
- 21
Virtue
George Herbert
George Herbert's "Virtue" is a brief lyric poem that presents three lovely things — a sweet day, a sweet rose, and a sweet spring — only to remind us that each eventually fades awa…
- 22
By Joseph Mery
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
A speaker stands at a tall doorway, framed by roses, gazing at three paths that the world presents: the perilous Sea, the tiring Town, and the bleak Highway heading north toward de…
- 23
Pros Apaideuton Gynaika
Sappho
This poem is Sappho's pointed message to a woman lacking education, cautioning her that without a love for poetry and the Muses, she will fade into oblivion after death — no roses…
- 24
Sonnet 1
William Shakespeare
Shakespeare's Sonnet 1 is a heartfelt appeal to a handsome young man: quit focusing so much on yourself and have children, so your beauty doesn’t vanish from the world. The poem su…
- 25
A Foreboding
James Russell Lowell
A speaker wonders what value the world holds if their loved one were to disappear — their beloved means so much that everything beautiful, from roses to stars, appears to exist bec…
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