Anger is a powerful emotion that can shape our lives in profound ways.
Immerse yourself in verses that not only express frustration but also offer insight and understanding into our struggles.
Here are 10 striking poems about anger that resonate with me and may inspire you to embrace your own emotions.
Let’s jump right in!
My favorite poem about anger
#1 “Anger” by Robert Herrick
Wrongs, if neglected, vanish in short time,
But heard with anger, we confess the crime.
I chose this as my favorite because it captures the essence of anger as a powerful catalyst for truth and acknowledgment.
I believe that acknowledging anger can lead to healing and understanding.
This poem reminds us that neglecting our feelings only allows them to fester, while embracing them can bring clarity and resolution.
9 more poems about anger
#2 “Angry Words” by Unknown
Angry words! O let them never
From the tongue unbridled slip;
May the heart’s best impulse ever
Check them, e’er they soil the lip.
Love is much too pure and holy,
Friendship is too sacred far,
For a moment’s reckless folly
Thus to desolate and mar.
Angry words are lightly spoken,
Bitterest thoughts are rashly stirred;
Brightest links of life are broken
By a single angry word.
#3 “God in Wrath” by Stephen Crane
A god in wrath
Was beating a man;
He cuffed him loudly
With thunderous blows
That rang and rolled over the earth.
All people came running.
The man screamed and struggled,
And bit madly at the feet of the god.
The people cried,
“Ah, what a wicked man!”
And —
“Ah, what a redoubtable god!”
#4 “Let Dogs Delight to Bark and Bite” by Isaac Watts
Let dogs delight to bark and bite,
For God hath made them so;
Let bears and lions growl and fight,
For ’tis their nature too.
But, children, you should never let
Such angry passions rise;
Your little hands were never made
To tear each other’s eyes.
#5 “Anger” by H. P. Nichols
When a child is cross and angry,
Never must her voice be heard;
Only to herself most softly
May she say this simple word,
“Lead us not into temptation;”
That will angry thoughts remove,
Make her calm and still and gentle,
With a spirit full of love.
#6 “Time’s Lesson” by Emily Dickinson
Mine enemy is growing old,—
I have at last revenge.
The palate of the hate departs;
If any would avenge,—
Let him be quick, the viand flits,
It is a faded meat.
Anger as soon as fed is dead;
’T is starving makes it fat.
#7 “Anger” by Charles and Mary Lamb
Anger in its time and place
May assume a kind of grace.
It must have some reason in it,
And not last beyond a minute.
If to further lengths it go,
It does into malice grow.
‘Tis the difference that we see
‘Twixt the serpent and the bee.
If the latter you provoke,
It inflicts a hasty stroke,
Puts you to some little pain,
But it never stings again.
Close in tufted bush or brake
Lurks the poison-swelled snake
Nursing up his cherished wrath;
In the purlieus of his path,
In the cold, or in the warm,
Mean him good, or mean him harm,
Wheresoever fate may bring you,
The vile snake will always sting you.
#8 “God’s Anger Without Affection” by Robert Herrick
God when He’s angry here with anyone,
His wrath is free from perturbation;
And when we think His looks are sour and grim,
The alteration is in us, not Him.
#9 “A Poison Tree” by William Blake
I was angry with my friend;
I told my wrath, my wrath did end.
I was angry with my foe:
I told it not, my wrath did grow.
And I watered it in fears,
Night & morning with my tears:
And I sunned it with smiles,
And with soft deceitful wiles.
And it grew both day and night.
Till it bore an apple bright.
And my foe beheld it shine,
And he knew that it was mine.
And into my garden stole,
When the night had veiled the pole;
In the morning glad I see;
My foe outstretched beneath the tree.
#10 “Anger & Wrath My Bosom Rends” by William Blake
Anger & Wrath my bosom rends
I thought them the Errors of friends
But all my limbs with warmth glow
I find them the Errors of the foe