In my opinion, these are the 5 best poems… ever. Featuring Poe, Whitman, and more! If you’re wondering what the best poems are, here are the top 5 poems of all time
The Top 5 Poems (in my opinion)
5. The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock
by T.S. Eliot (1915)
What I like so much about poetry is that it can be anything so long as it is built by words. If your paint is language, than poetry is your art. What makes Eliot’s poem so fantastic is the way the words flow together. The way he attacks the pompous elitist class is subtle and lovely. Many have reservations about T.S. Eliot’s antisemitism, and it’s understandable. But if you read the dialogue that took place between Groucho Marx and Eliot post-WWII, it shows that Eliot was quick to come around when he learned the error of his ways and really, at that point, what else can you ask for?
“Do I dare
Disturb the universe?
In a minute there is time
For decisions and revisions which a minute will reverse.”
4. Dinosauria, We
by Charles Bukowski (1993)
Unfortunately, the poem that made me fall in love with Bukowski is hard to locate in places other than YouTube and the documentary “Born into This,” which is a line from the poem. You can hear Bukowski read the poem in the video below. My second favorite Bukowski poem, “Me,” is easy to find in the collection “Love is a Dog from Hell” (1977). After searching the internet for a while, I don’t know if this poem is in one of his collections. It seems that he wrote this in 1993 so it might be in “Betting on the Muse: Poems and Stories” (1996) or “The Last Night of the Earth Poems” (1992)
3. Howl
by Allen GInsberg (1955)
There aren’t many poems that get their own movie. And I completely accept that James Franco turned out to be a huge asshole, but before his fall, he had two performances that were pretty impressive. One was in The Disaster Artist and with that one, I think he told his brother to hold his beer and forgot to come back for it. That’s neither here nor there. The 2010 film Howl is one of the only films I can think of that is honestly based off a poem, and just the poetry itself. (I will not count 2013’s The Raven by the Wachowskis…) I love Howl, I love Ginsberg, and I think the movie is worth the watch… just try to forget that Green Goblin Jr. did some pretty shitty things… if you can.
2. Song of Myself (part 50)
by Walt Whitman (1855)
When I was around ten years old, my Dad drove us through Camden, NJ on a road trip to see Walt Whitman’s grave and for many years, I was like… Why?
When I read Song of Myself – I knew why. It has been called the greatest American poem of all time, but obviously, that’s about to be revealed…
Nonetheless, this work is a masterpiece. I particularly am fond of part 50 (as there are 52 parts – one for each week of the year)… it is quoted at the very end of my latest novel Remember Me, Nothing.
If I’m allowed to include all 52 parts of the poem as one poem, then enjoy the following video I did for a school project over a decade ago, depicting part 1, featuring none other than my dad himself as narrator and he’s even portraying Whitman.
1. The Raven
by Edgar Allan Poe (1845)
I might be partial because I’m from Maryland, but this is the poem that signifies when poetry reached its peak in humanity’s timeline. I read this poem to my children every Halloween and they love it every single time. It has stood the test of time similar to the way that the Mona de Lisa can be representative of the painting world. Its prestige commonly tarnishes it, but when you read this poem aloud, you can fucking feel it. The alliteration, the assonance, and the best of all – that rhythm. Then you can also talk about the tone, the metaphors, and the spiritual implications it entails regarding the human condition. If you are unaware of Whitman’s book Specimen Days, it is great and documents an encounter he had with Poe as they were passing each other, boarding a ferry. They exchange pleasantries and go about their days and I would’ve killed to be at that moment right there in time just to see Poe and Whitman say “Hey” to each other.
“Take thy beak from out my heart,
and take thy form from off my door!”
Quoth the Raven “Nevermore.”’
Let me know your favorites, especially from more diverse poets. …Unless you’re going to be a jerk. Then, you know, don’t bother. Go read some poetry.
top 5 poems, written by BW Derge
