15+ Must-Read Poems about the Sky

(15 to start, 75+ to explore)

Poems about the sky often celebrate the vastness and beauty of the heavens above. These verses use imagery to describe the ever-changing colors, the movement of clouds, and the celestial bodies that fill the sky.

Poets draw inspiration from sunrises and sunsets, starry nights, and the wonders of nature. These poems can evoke a sense of wonder and freedom.

They may also use the sky as a metaphor to explore emotions, dreams, and life’s boundless possibilities.

Poem Explorer Poetry Archives

PDF Guide

Nationality:

Themes:

Emotions:

Topics:

Form:

Genre:

"> 76/100

When I Heard the Learn’d Astronomer

by Walt Whitman

Walt Whitman’s ‘When I Heard the Learn’d Astronomer’ emphasizes the significance of experiencing nature to access deeper knowledge.

The sky, filled with stars, serves as a symbol of infinite beauty and mystery. The speaker’s silent contemplation of the sky emphasizes the poem’s theme of finding awe and inspiration outside the confines of structured education.

When I heard the learn’d astronomer,

When the proofs, the figures, were ranged in columns before me,

When I was shown the charts and diagrams, to add, divide, and measure them,

When I sitting heard the astronomer where he lectured with much applause in the lecture-room,

PDF Guide

Nationality:

Themes:

Emotions:

Topics:

Form:

Genre:

"> 73/100

The cold earth slept below

by Percy Bysshe Shelley

Shelley’s ‘The cold earth slept below’ paints a freezing winter night where the speaker discovers his beloved’s cold body.

This poem explores the topic of the sky through its portrayal of a cold and indifferent celestial backdrop. Above the wintry landscape, the sky is described as "cold" and "shining," contrasting with the desolation below. This celestial perspective underscores the poem's theme of nature's vastness and indifference, highlighting the insignificance of human emotions against the backdrop of cosmic indifference.

The cold earth slept below;

Above the cold sky shone;

And all around,

With a chilling sound,

PDF Guide

Nationality:

Themes:

Topics:

Form:

Genre:

"> 67/100

A Child’s Garden

by Rudyard Kipling

‘A Child’s Garden’ by Rudyard Kipling is written from the perspective of a young sick boy who is dreaming of escaping his confining and frightening life by taking to the sky in an airplane.

Now there is nothing wrong with me

Except -- I think it's called T.B.

And that is why I have to lay

Out in the garden all the day.

PDF Guide

Nationality:

Themes:

Emotions:

Topics:

Form:

"> 65/100

The Flight of Two Geese

by Pat Ross

‘The Flight of Two Geese’ marvels at nature’s splendor and contemplates the divine design believed responsible for it.

The grey winter sky serves as both a backdrop and a stage for the geese’s journey. It frames their movements, highlighting their grace as they ascend, bank, and disappear. The sky symbolizes openness, infinity, and the boundless opportunities for exploration, echoing the expansive possibilities inherent in life and nature.

The winter air had settled in, today was cold Two geese slung low, below the clouds Then, spotted us and climbed up above us And sounded their presence and it echoed

PDF Guide

Themes:

Emotions:

Topics:

Getting Back Together

Form:

Genre:

"> 65/100

Tonight I Can Write

by Pablo Neruda

‘Tonight I Can Write’ by Pablo Neruda explores love’s transient nature and enduring impact, capturing poignant emotions felt after a breakup.

Like night, the sky also becomes a silent witness of the speaker's despair while reminding him of the past. It can also be interpreted that the boundless expanse of the sky reflects the everlasting quality of memories, tormenting the speaker to the point of being submerged in sorrow. Since the sky triggers the memories of the ex-lover, it becomes an unattainable metaphorical realm, eluding the speaker's grasp regardless of the intensity of his yearning.

Tonight I can write the saddest lines.

Write, for example, 'The night is starry and the stars are blue and shiver in the distance.'

The night wind revolves in the sky and sings.

Tonight I can write the saddest lines.

PDF Guide

Nationality:

Themes:

Emotions:

Topics:

Forms:

Genre:

"> 63/100

All Things Bright and Beautiful

by Cecil Frances Alexander

‘All Things Bright and Beautiful’ by Cecil Frances Alexander describes how God is responsible for creating all things, positive and negative, big and small, in the world.

The sky is mentioned with sunsets and sunrises, showing the everyday wonders of the world. These moments in the sky represent the daily reminders of God's presence and creativity. The poem uses the sky to underline the theme of everyday miracles, making it a good example of how the sky can symbolize endless possibilities and divine beauty.

All things bright and beautiful,

All creatures great and small,

All things wise and wonderful,

The Lord God made them all.

PDF Guide

Nationality:

Themes:

Emotions:

Topics:

Form:

Genre:

"> 62/100

Crescent

by C.D. Wright

Carolyn D. Wright’s ‘Crescent’ is a thoughtful poem that describes a speaker’s intimate, incoherent feelings. She appreciates the nocturne with warmth and passion.

The sky in 'Crescent' represents vastness and emotional freedom. The speaker looks up at the open sky and finds a sense of release from her confined thoughts and surroundings. The sky becomes a metaphor for the speaker’s mind, expansive and fluid, filled with possibilities and room for growth. It provides a sense of connection to the world beyond herself, offering comfort in its endlessness.

In recent months I have become intent on seizing happi-

ness: to this end I applied various shades of blue: only

the evening is outside us now propagating honeysuckle:

PDF Guide

Nationality:

Themes:

Topics:

Form:

"> 58/100

Life is but a Dream

by Lewis Carroll

‘Life is but a Dream’ by Lewis Carroll is a poem that depicts the logic and illogic of dreams and life, suggesting that our entire lives are one long dream.

A boat, beneath a sunny sky

Lingering onward dreamily

In an evening of July--

PDF Guide

Nationality:

Themes:

Emotions:

Topics:

Form:

"> 57/100

Moods

by Sara Teasdale

‘Moods’ by Sara Teasdale unveils nature’s embrace in weariness and dreams, as rain and birds echo universal aspirations.

Teasdale's poem explores the topic of the sky as a symbol of boundless aspirations. The brown bird's yearning to be the shining cloud embodies the desire for limitless possibilities. The poem paints the sky as a metaphorical canvas where dreams take flight, exploring the vast expanse as a representation of both freedom and the uncharted journey ahead.

I am the still rain falling,

Too tired for singing mirth —

Oh, be the green fields calling,

Oh, be for me the earth!

#10

PDF Guide

Nationality:

Themes:

Emotions:

Topics:

Forms:

Genre:

"> 57/100

Ode to Hope

by Pablo Neruda

‘Ode to Hope’ by Pablo Neruda is a short poem which uses the image of the sun rising over the sea to relate a message of hope.

The sky is a symbol of peace and hope in Pablo Neruda's 'Ode to Hope.' Neruda uses its vastness and, ironically, its emptiness (solitude) to paint a picture of satisfaction and an overall optimism that inspires hope. The interplay between sky and sea also adds to this effect.

Oceanic dawn

at the center

of my life,

waves like grapes,

#11

PDF Guide

Nationality:

Themes:

Emotions:

Topics:

Form:

Genre:

"> 57/100

Stars

by Sara Teasdale

‘Stars’ by Sara Teasdale presents nature’s majesty through the sublime beauty and timelessness of stars providing spiritual truth.

The dark night sky works as a canvas for the stars to shine, making it seem bejeweled. The vastness of the sky creates an otherworldy aura of surrealism, bearing celestial bodies like stars while evoking the grandeur, timelessness, and mystery of the universe. This poem uses the word heaven instead of sky to accentuate the ethereal, spiritual, and sublime atmosphere.

And a heaven full of stars

Over my head

White and topaz

And misty red;

#12

PDF Guide

Nationality:

Themes:

Emotions:

Topics:

Form:

"> 55/100

At that hour when all things have repose

by James Joyce

‘At that hour when all things have repose’ by James Joyce is a lyrical poem that explores themes of lovelorn solitude and the sublime beauty of music.

The sky plays an important role as a kind of setting in this poem. It is the location of the "lonely watcher" that the speaker addresses throughout, but it is also where the music resides, beckoning the return of the sun. The final stanza's stunning imagery also takes place high in the heavens and envisions the music crescendoing like the arrival of dawn.

At that hour when all things have repose,

O lonely watcher of the skies,

Do you hear the night wind and the sighs

Of harps playing unto Love to unclose

#13

PDF Guide

Nationality:

Themes:

Emotions:

Topics:

Form:

"> 55/100

Mont Brevent

by George Santayana

‘Mont Brevent’ by George Santayana looks up in awe and finds solace in the sight of a majestic mountain peak.

One minor topic that also comes up in the poem is the relationship between the mountain and the sky. Twice, the speaker mentions the expanse of space that sits above the mountain. The first is a striking image of space and the planets above, while the second underscores the serenity of the sky itself.

O dweller in the valley, lift thine eyes

To where, above the drift of cloud, the stone

Endures in silence, and to God alone

Upturns its furrowed visage, and is wise.

#14

PDF Guide

Nationality:

Themes:

Emotions:

Topics:

Forms:

Genre:

"> 54/100

Christabel

by Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Coleridge’s ‘Christabel’ is an uncompleted long narrative that tells the story of Christabel and Geraldine, featuring supernatural elements.

The sky in ‘Christabel’ often reflects the poem’s underlying tension and sense of foreboding. While the sky isn’t a central image, Coleridge uses its vastness and the cover of night to enhance the gothic ambiance. The sky’s portrayal complements the themes of mystery and the supernatural, subtly influencing the reader’s perception of the unfolding events.

'Tis the middle of night by the castle clock,

And the owls have awakened the crowing cock;

Tu—whit! Tu—whoo!

And hark, again! the crowing cock,

#15

PDF Guide

Nationality:

Themes:

Emotions:

Topics:

Forms:

"> 50/100

Lines Composed a Few Miles above Tintern Abbey

by William Wordsworth

Wordsworth’s ‘Lines Composed a Few Miles above Tintern Abbey’ tells of the power and influence of nature in guiding life and morality.

The sky is a recurring image in the poem, and is used to suggest the vastness and expansiveness of the natural world. Wordsworth describes the sky as a "dome of many-coloured glass," and suggests that it is a symbol of the infinite possibilities and mysteries of the natural world.

Five years have past; five summers, with the length

Of five long winters! and again I hear

These waters, rolling from their mountain-springs

With a soft inland murmur.—Once again

Home » Collection » Poems about Sky

15+ Must-Read Poems about the Sky

(15 to start, 75+ to explore)

General

Poetry+

Discover

Useful Links

15+ Must-Read Poems about the Sky

(15 to start, 75+ to explore)

by Walt Whitman

by Percy Bysshe Shelley

by Rudyard Kipling

by Pat Ross

by Pablo Neruda

by Cecil Frances Alexander

by C.D. Wright

by Lewis Carroll

by Sara Teasdale

by Pablo Neruda

by Sara Teasdale

by James Joyce

by George Santayana

by Samuel Taylor Coleridge

by William Wordsworth

Narrow Your Search

We Look Deep into Poetry

General

Poetry+

Discover

Useful Links