10 Love Poems by Famous Poets for Valentine's Day

In honor of Valentine's Day, I've selected ten well known love poems to help remind us of the feelings we experience in a deep, meaningful relationship.

With credit given to the authors, knowing that poetry was written to be shared, I hope the ten love poems below will inspire your love and the
 creative spark within you to share your feelings in verse.

Love's Philosophy by Percy Bysshe Shelley
The fountains mingle with the river
And the rivers with the ocean,
The winds of Heaven mix forever
With a sweet emotion;
Nothing in the world is single;
All things by a law divine
In one spirit meet and mingle.
Why not I with thine? -

See the mountains kiss high Heaven
And the waves clasp one another;
No sister-flower would be forgiven
If it disdained its brother;
And the sunlight clasps the earth
And the moonbeams kiss the sea:
What is all this sweet work worth
If thou kiss not me?

I cannot speak of love and Valentine's Day without considering The Bard of love sonnets, William Shakespeare.

Shakespeare's 18th Sonnet
Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate:
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
And summer's lease hath all too short a date:
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
And often is his gold complexion dimm'd;
And every fair from fair sometime declines,
By chance or nature's changing course untrimm'd;
But thy eternal summer shall not fade
Nor lose possession of that fair thou owest;
Nor shall Death brag thou wander'st in his shade,
When in eternal lines to time thou growest:
So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,
So long lives this and this gives life to thee.

In "You'll Love Me Yet! - and I Can Tarry," Robert Browning pledges to remain true to unrequited love, assured that it will grow, if it takes until death.

You'll Love Me Yet! - and I Can Tarry by Robert Browning
You'll love me yet!-and I can tarry
Your love's protracted growing:
June reared that bunch of flowers you carry
From seeds of April's sowing.

I plant a heartful now: some seed
At least is sure to strike,
And yield-what you'll not pluck indeed,
Not love, but, may be, like!

 
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Nice poems!

Posted on 04/15/2009 at 7:04:20 AM

Excellent list!

Posted on 04/13/2009 at 6:04:58 PM

Interesting selections, Lenora - Bradstreet, especially. One doesn't normally think of Puritans writing love poetry (smile)... Love transcends all. Best, Michael

Posted on 02/29/2008 at 9:02:48 PM

Walt Whitman is probably my all time favorite poet. But, these all are truly great Valentine's Day poems from the best-of-the-best poets. Great job putting this together for us. Wow.

Posted on 02/14/2008 at 1:02:03 PM

Wonderful! I really loved reading these and thank you for the mention!

Posted on 01/15/2008 at 12:01:29 PM

Great selection! It's hard to pick a favorite.

Posted on 01/13/2008 at 5:01:07 PM

Enjoyed the review-I like the one by Anne Bradstreet best.

Posted on 01/13/2008 at 4:01:04 PM

Somewhere I never travelled has long been a fav of mine. Thanks for the list.

Posted on 01/10/2008 at 10:01:00 AM

Ahh...how romantic. Takes me back to highschool years :)

Posted on 01/10/2008 at 7:01:47 AM

I love Valentine's Day and I love these poems.

Posted on 01/09/2008 at 4:01:49 PM

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