Poems centered on trust issues dive deep into the scars left by shattered trust. They intricately examine the hesitations and reservations that inevitably surface after past betrayals or disappointments.
The psychological aftermath of betrayal often serves as fertile ground for the cultivation of trust issues, casting a shadow of caution over one’s perception of the world. For instance, if one has endured betrayal in past relationships, it’s natural to approach new connections with guardedness. The relentless cycle of disappointment with oneself can erode confidence, fostering an internal struggle with trusting one’s abilities.
This poetry shows how trust issues reverberate in life, tarnishing relationships with both oneself and others. Trust issues with oneself can damage one’s confidence and self-worth. Similarly, in relationships, a lack of trust can sow discord, leading to conflicts and breakdowns in communication.
These verses encapsulate the arduous journey of grappling with the reluctance to open one’s heart anew and the haunting fear of vulnerability. Through the medium of poetry, individuals navigating trust issues may find solace in a shared journey of healing and the gradual reclamation of faith in the inherent goodness of others or one’s self-worth despite the scars of the past.
In ‘Nightmare Begins Responsibility,’ Michael S. Harper shares the heartbreaking experience of losing his two sons at the time of birth.
I place these numbed wrists to the pane
watching white uniforms whisk over
him in the tube-kept
prison
‘Home Burial’ by Robert Frost depicts a mother grieving for her deceased son and her broader conflicts with her husband.
He saw her from the bottom of the stairs
Before she saw him. She was starting down,
Looking back over her shoulder at some fear.
She took a doubtful step and then undid it
‘Sonnet 35’ by Elizabeth Barrett Browning contains the speaker’s worries about life changes as she embarks on a new life with her lover.
If I leave all for thee, wilt thou exchange
And be all to me? Shall I never miss
Home-talk and blessing and the common kiss
That comes to each in turn, nor count it strange,
‘A Jet Ring Sent’ by John Donne describes how the speaker’s beloved returned his jet-black promise ring and how he felt after that.
Thou art not so black as my heart,
Nor half so brittle as her heart, thou art ;
What would'st thou say ? shall both our properties by thee be spoke,
—Nothing more endless, nothing sooner broke?
‘Because I Liked You Better’ by A. E. Housman is a love poem that taps on the theme of unrequited love. Like his “A Shropshire Lad” poems, it also touches on the theme of death.
Because I liked you better
Than suits a man to say,
It irked you, and I promised
To throw the thought away.
‘There was a time when my cheek burned’ by Emily Brontë describes the speaker’s passion for justice and how the world disappointed them.
There was a time when my cheek burned
To give such scornful fiends the lie;
Ungoverned nature madly spurned
The law that bade it not defy.
‘If it were not too late!’ follows Stephen Spender’s journey as he processes an emotional betrayal and the opportunities he has lost.
If it were not too late!
If I could mould my thought
To the curved form of that woman
With gleaming eyes, raven hair,
‘Religio Laici’ by John Dryden is a reflective discourse in unadorned verse that explores faith, reason, and the complexities of religious beliefs.
Dim, as the borrow'd beams of moon and stars
To lonely, weary, wand'ring travellers,
Is reason to the soul; and as on high,
Those rolling fires discover but the sky
Sonnet 138, ‘When my love swears that she is made of truth,’ explores the complex dynamics of love, deception, and trust in a relationship.
When my love swears that she is made of truth,
I do believe her though I know she lies,
That she might think me some untutored youth,
Unlearned in the world's false subtleties.
‘Love After Love’ by Derek Walcott is a poem, that is presented in the form of a person offering advice to someone who is distressed.
The time will come
when, with elation
you will greet yourself arriving
at your own door, in your own mirror
‘Farewell, Ungrateful Traitor!’ by John Dryden swears off men and relationships. The speaker asserts that men are incapable of being truthful or loving as much as women.
Farewell ungrateful traitor,
Farewell my perjured swain,
Let never injured creature
Believe a man again.
‘Matins (Forgive Me If I Say I Love You)’ is a well thought out piece about someone who is eager to love but has not been given anything to work with.
Forgive me if I say I love you: the powerful
are always lied to since the weak are always
driven by panic. I cannot love
what I can’t conceive, and you disclose
‘I Was Not False to Thee’ by Caroline Norton is a poem about loneliness and a speaker’s feelings of unequal treatment.
I was not false to thee, and yet
My cheek alone looked pale;
My weary eye was dim and wet,
My strength began to fail.
This section of ‘The Merchant’s Tale’ by Geoffrey Chaucer introduces January’s friends and their opinions on marriage.
Diverse men diversely hym tolde
Of mariage manye ensamples olde.
Somme blamed it, somme preysed it, certeyn,
But atte laste, shortly for to seyn,
Heaney’s ‘The Other Side’ explores the divisions across Ireland’s sectarian divide through evolving neighborly relations.
Thigh-deep in sedge and marigolds,
a neighbour laid his shadow
on the stream, vouching
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