15+ Gripping Poems about Selfishness

(15 to start, 20+ to explore)

Poems about selfishness unmask the darker aspects of human nature. They explore the repercussions of self-centeredness on individuals and society at large.

Through introspective verses, poets reflect on their moments of selfishness and their impact on relationships. These poems challenge readers to examine their behaviors, cultivating empathy and understanding for others.

By acknowledging the complexity of human flaws, these verses encourage growth and personal transformation, inviting readers to embrace a more compassionate and selfless way of living.

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The Giving Tree

by Shel Silverstein

‘The Giving Tree’ by Shel Silverstein explores unconditional love, sacrifice, and the bittersweet journey of giving without expecting anything back.

Selfishness is explored through the boy’s actions, especially in his early years. He repeatedly takes from the tree without giving anything back. The poem shows how selfishness can harm relationships, but also how growth and understanding can emerge from such behavior. Ultimately, the boy’s realization of the tree’s sacrifice points to the possibility of change and redemption.

Once there was a tree....

and she loved a little boy.

And everyday the boy would come

and he would gather her leaves

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After the Titanic

by Derek Mahon

‘After the Titanic’ offers a unique character study into an important historical figure but also explores how people handle disaster.

The public saw Ismay as selfish for saving himself while others drowned. The poem explores this judgment—does his survival define him as selfish, or was it instinct? Mahon forces the reader to consider how society assigns blame and whether one moment can erase a lifetime. Ismay's tendency is to focus on his own suffering, however.

They said I got away in a boat

And humbled me at the inquiry. I tell you

I sank as far that night as any

Hero. As I sat shivering on the dark water

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Sonnet 1

by William Shakespeare

Shakespeare’s Sonnet 1, ‘From fairest creatures we desire increase,’ appeals to the Fair Youth to procreate and preserve his beauty.

The speaker accuses the Fair Youth of selfishness as he evades his responsibility of passing on the beauty he received from the previous generation. The frustrated speaker expresses his contempt for the young man's despicable and selfish act, stating, 'Within thine own bud buriest thy content/ And, tender churl, mak'st waste in niggarding.' He also calls out the Fair Youth's self-centredness, which is causing the world a tremendous of beauty; it is evident in the lines like, 'But thou, contracted to thine own bright eyes,' 'Within thine own bud buriest thy content,' 'Pity the world, or else this glutton be' etc.

From fairest creatures we desire increase,

That thereby beauty’s rose might never die,

But as the riper should by time decease,

His tender heir might bear his memory;

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VIII

by Stephen Spender

‘VIII’ by Stephen Spender is a short symbolic poem highlighting and criticizing the attributes of selfishness. Throughout the poem, Spender refers to selfishness as the “I” character.

The overarching topic of 'VIII' is selfishness. The entire poem is a cautionary tale on this quality. In the poem, Spender reiterates through several forms of repetition just how harmful it is to be selfish.

An ‘I’ can never be great man.

This known great one has weakness

To friends is most remarkable for weakness

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what if a much of a which of a wind

by E.E. Cummings

Cummings’ ‘what if a much of a which of a wind’ presents different fragmented apocalyptic visions in an experimental language.

The poem's last line, 'the most who die,the more we live,' is often interpreted as the most the other humans will die the more we or us will thrive; this idea can be extended to universal human selfishness of exploiting and destroying others for personal gain. This universal self-serving notion assures humans that survival and prosperity often demand others' ruin. It's often invoked to maintain power, comfort, or security; for instance, war's violence is justified using this notion.

what if a much of a which of a wind

gives the truth to summer’s lie;

bloodies with dizzying leaves the sun

and yanks immortal stars awry?

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The Clod and the Pebble

by William Blake

In the three-stanza poem, ‘The Clod and the Pebble,’ William Blake takes on the subject of love and its meaning for two separate things, one being a “Clod” and another being a “Pebble.”

The poem ‘The Clod and the Pebble’ focuses on selfishness by showing how love can be either selfless or self-serving. The clod believes in giving everything for love, even at the cost of personal suffering, while the pebble sees love as something meant to bring joy to itself, even if it causes pain to others. This contrast shows how selfishness can change the way people experience love.

"Love seeketh not itself to please,

Nor for itself hath any care,

But for another gives its ease,

And builds a Heaven in Hell's despair."

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Loving Someone You Can't Have

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Mariana

by Alfred Lord Tennyson

‘Mariana’ by Alfred Lord Tennyson, drawing from a Shakespearean play, depicts the sorrow of a lonely woman abandoned by her lover.

From an ecocritical perspective, the poem's decaying environment does not symbolize Mariana's dejection; instead, it stands independently of her mental state. Thus, Mariana's neglect causes the environment to degrade in her surroundings as she does not care for them in her grief. Also, she seems to project her emotions onto the environment and perceive it as decayed when, instead, her lack of care degrades the environment.

With blackest moss the flower-plots

Were thickly crusted, one and all:

The rusted nails fell from the knots

That held the pear to the gable-wall.

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We Lived Happily during the War

by Ilya Kaminsky

‘We Lived Happily during the War’ reflects complex feelings of guilt for US foreign policy decisions through the lens of one individual.

Although the poem doesn’t directly mention selfishness, there’s a sense that the speaker feels guilty about living a normal life while others suffer. This quiet selfishness comes from enjoying a life of safety and comfort that others don’t have. Kaminsky hints that even small acts of everyday life can seem selfish when people elsewhere are facing the brutal consequences of war.

And when they bombed other people's houses, we

protested
but not enough, we opposed them but not

enough.

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At the Bus Station

by Julius Chingono

‘At the Bus Station’ by Julius Chingono offers advice on how to survive the selfish pandemonium of a bus commute.

One of the words that comes to mind throughout the poem is selfishness. Without belittling the necessity of getting to work on time, Chingono's poem reveals that modern humans, for all our supposed progressions and advancements, still engage in pretty brutish ways. Incapable of even using public transportation without devolving into panicky, self-centered animals that care only about their own wants and needs.

When you arrive

at the bus station

pull down your tie

or remove the tie

#10

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To Life

by Thomas Hardy

‘To Life’ by Thomas Hardy is a deeply poignant poem that personifies life as a dreary individual whom the speaker accosts out of sadness.

Some interpretations of Thomas Hardy's poem might observe a degree of selfishness within the reader. Certainly, the poet's framing of the scene as an interaction between the speaker and an impoverished individual is intentional. Their complaints are rendered far more personal, as they're directed at another person rather than an idea or concept.

O Life with the sad seared face,

I weary of seeing thee,

And thy draggled cloak, and thy hobbling pace,

And thy too-forced pleasantry!

#11

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Loving Someone You Can't Have

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Love Armed

by Aphra Behn

‘Love Armed’ warns the reader against falling under the embittering and tyrannical control of love.

The poem presents the idea that love is a battlefield and the speaker’s heart is simply one of many, many casualties. Although both the speaker and the beloved have “armed” love, only one escapes unscathed. This leads to a discarding of compassion or empathy in favor of a self-centered concern for oneself only.

Love in Fantastic Triumph sat, Whilst Bleeding Hearts around him flowed, For whom Fresh pains he did Create, Love in Fantastic Triumph sat, Whilst Bleeding Hearts around him flowed, For whom Fresh pains he did Create, And strange Tyrannic power he showed; And strange Tyrannic power he showed;

#12

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The friend

by Marge Piercy

‘The friend’ by Marge Piercy explores an abusive relationship in which the woman is subjugated by her selfish partner.

We sat across the table.

he said, cut off your hands.

they are always poking at things.

they might touch me.

#13

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O Me! O Life!

by Walt Whitman

‘O Me! O Life!’ by Walt Whitman is a poem where being capable of boosting the quality of “life” is presented through juxtaposed ideas.

In the beginning of the poem, the speaker talks about people who seem to live without care or thought. Words like "faithless" and "foolish" suggest that many around him are focused only on themselves. He includes himself in this criticism, which adds honesty to the observation. The poem never directly says people are selfish, but the way they are described shows a lack of care for others. This quiet judgment shapes how the world in the poem feels.

Oh me! Oh life! of the questions of these recurring,

Of the endless trains of the faithless, of cities fill’d with the foolish,

Of myself forever reproaching myself, (for who more foolish than I, and who more faithless?)

#14

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Cahoots

by Carl Sandburg

‘Cahoots’ by Carl Sandburg delves into the dark underbelly of a corrupt city, exposing the collusion and exploitation that thrive within its power structures.

This poem explores the topic of selfishness through the portrayal of individuals driven by their own self-interests at the expense of others. The poem exposes the manipulative and exploitative actions of these individuals, who prioritize personal gain over moral values. It highlights the negative consequences of selfish behavior, emphasizing the need for empathy and consideration for others.

Play it across the table.

What if we steal this city blind?

If they want any thing let 'em nail it down.

Harness bulls, dicks, front office men,

#15

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Part IX: The Merchant’s Tale

by Geoffrey Chaucer

In Part IX, Damian and May enact their long-awaited plans to engage in adultery. Pluto ensures the two are discovered as he restores January’s sight.

May is enabled to get what she desires through selfishness. She implicates her husband in his own cuckoldry and lies to him when she is discovered. May demonstrates an inability to take accountability, shifting blame onto her husband despite his innocence in this situation.

Now lat us turne agayn to Januarie,

That in the gardyn with his faire May

Syngeth ful murier than the papejay,

"Yow love I best, and shal, and oother noon."

Home » Collection » Poems about Selfishness

15+ Gripping Poems about Selfishness

(15 to start, 20+ to explore)

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15+ Gripping Poems about Selfishness

(15 to start, 20+ to explore)

by Shel Silverstein

by Derek Mahon

by William Shakespeare

by Stephen Spender

by E.E. Cummings

by William Blake

by Alfred Lord Tennyson

by Ilya Kaminsky

by Julius Chingono

by Thomas Hardy

by Aphra Behn

by Marge Piercy

by Walt Whitman

by Carl Sandburg

by Geoffrey Chaucer

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