Society of Classical Poets logo
  • About Us
  • Join
  • Donate
  • Poetry
    Random
    • 'A Sonnet for the Citizens' by Claude Clayton Smith

      The Society
      November 27, 2020
      Deconstructing Communism, Human Rights in China, Poetry
      3 Comments
    Recent
    • ‘The Magpie’s Chorus’ and Other Poetry by David Watt

      The Society
      March 1, 2021
      9
    • On Gov. Cuomo: ‘Governor Mussolini’ and Other Poetry by Joe Tessitore

      The Society
      February 28, 2021
      23
    • ‘Free Verse: Recondite Done Right!’ by Tonia Kalouria

      The Society
      February 28, 2021
      12
    • ‘Eyes on the Prize’ and Other Poetry by C.B. Anderson

      The Society
      February 27, 2021
      19
    • ‘A Song of Saint Francis’ and Other Poetry by Brian Yapko

      The Society
      February 26, 2021
      15
    • ‘Three Experiments in Poetic Form’ by James A. Tweedie

      The Society
      February 25, 2021
      27
  • Submit
  • Contests
    Random
    • Write a Poem on One of These Photographs

      The Society
      November 1, 2019
      Beauty, Culture, Ekphrastic, Humor, Poetry, Poetry Contests
      39 Comments
    Recent
    • The Best Poems of 2020

      The Society
      February 1, 2021
      26
    • Winners of 2021 High School Poetry Competition Announced

      The Society
      February 1, 2021
      5
    • Winners of 2021 Poetry Translation Competition Announced

      The Society
      February 1, 2021
      4
    • Turn a Joke into a Poem—Poetry Challenge

      The Society
      December 8, 2020
      72
    • Winners of the ‘Napa Valley Winery’ Ekphrastic Poetry Contest

      The Society
      November 15, 2020
      13
    • Ekphrastic Contest: Write a Poem on This Photograph

      The Society
      October 8, 2020
      148
  • Journal
  • Essays
    Random
    • Review: 'The Stargazers,' A First Book of Poems by James McKee

      The Society
      April 9, 2020
      Essays, Poetry, Reviews
    Recent
    • The Power of One: Monosyllables in Classical Poetry

      The Society
      February 18, 2021
      16
    • The Singing Lines of Theresa Rodriguez: A Review of Sonnets

      The Society
      January 12, 2021
      13
    • Two Poems Making Use of ‘Conceits,’ by Joseph S. Salemi

      The Society
      January 9, 2021
      26
    • The Struggle for the Formalist Tradition: An Essay by Joseph S. Salemi

      The Society
      December 13, 2020
      58
    • Essay: ‘Portrait of a Millennial Art Student’ by Sally Cook

      The Society
      October 24, 2020
      22
    • A Review of Juvenalia by Reid McGrath

      The Society
      October 12, 2020
      12
  • Members
  • Poetry Contests
  • Donate
  • About Us
  • Submit

Author The Society

The Society

The Society of Classical Poets was founded in New York in July, 2012.

An Ode to Anti-French Revolution Hero ‘Charlotte Corday,’ by Jeremy Gadd

The Society
October 11, 2020
Beauty, Culture, Deconstructing Communism, Poetry
6 Comments
  Brave, brave, Charlotte Corday, took upon herself to slay that man of revolutionary violence, Jean-Paul Marat. On July thirteenth in ninety-three, the convent girl from near the sea, stabbed...

A Poem on Kangaroos: ‘With Spring in Their Step’ by David Watt

The Society
October 10, 2020
Beauty, Culture, Poetry
19 Comments
  When springtime has come to the high mountain ranges The melting of snow bares the landscape to changes; And creatures awaken from seasonal slumber In valleys below, where snows never...

‘While Sitting by Her’ and Other Poetry by Peter Hartley

The Society
October 9, 2020
Beauty, Culture, Poetry
27 Comments
  While Sitting by Her While sitting by her sometimes I would eye Her dextrous fingers plying to and fro While unbeknown to her, as she would sew And crochet, knit and stitch and satisfy Her urge to...

Ekphrastic Contest: Write a Poem on This Photograph

The Society
October 8, 2020
Culture, Ekphrastic, Poetry Contests, The Environment
148 Comments
See the winners here. Above is a recent photograph of Chateau Boswell, a winery, vineyard, and tasting room located in California. It has suffered terribly because of the recent “Glass Fire” in Napa...

‘Eternal Apocalypse’: A Poem on Climate Change and Others by Susan Jarvis Bryant

The Society
October 8, 2020
Coronavirus, Humor, Poetry, The Environment
24 Comments
  Eternal Apocalypse I’ve managed to escape a coming ice age; A mammoth hasn’t tossed me to my death. I’ve dodged the planet’s ozone-waning end-stage; Our green and pleasant land’s still...

‘News of the Revolution’ by Daniel Kemper

The Society
October 7, 2020
Culture, Deconstructing Communism, Poetry
4 Comments
  News of the Revolution Revolt or riot? Both? Or civil war? No matter what, who hasn't realized the revolution's being televised. The camera always wants a little more: the street churns; a...

‘The Harvest of an Ancient Past’ by Daniel Kemper

The Society
October 7, 2020
Beauty, Culture, Poetry
14 Comments
  The harvest of an ancient past can waft to mind as we enjoy a measured taste of last year's blend. The darlings who were chased down vineyard lanes, who drew us to come after her with earthy...

‘The City-Bird’ by Michael Curtis

The Society
October 6, 2020
Humor, Poetry
4 Comments
  a parody of Tennyson's "The Eagle" Upon the bronze haired statue head Enringed in evening’s smoggy spread She beak-pecks on a littered bread. There, on the gritty concrete lies A pop of corn...

‘Sonnet Sonnet’ by Theresa Rodriguez

The Society
October 5, 2020
Beauty, Culture, Poetry
14 Comments
  To write of love, or speak of other things Like life or death, or such philosophy As might stir up an eager mind, which brings It to a bold, enriched reality: Oh, perfect, lovely forms! With...

‘Spindle, Shuttle, Loom’ by Joseph S. Salemi

The Society
October 4, 2020
Beauty, Culture, Poetry
14 Comments
…anulbaṇáṃ vayata jóguvām ápaḥ. Weave ye the singers’ work without a knot. —Rigveda 10.53.6 Those pale cream swaths of handmade linen, brought From Sicily around 1905 Lay in our rag drawer...

A Poem on Riots Across America: ‘Ethics Lesson 101,’ and Others by Bruce Dale Wise

The Society
October 3, 2020
Beauty, Culture, Poetry
6 Comments
  Ethics Lesson 101 by Caud Sewer Bile Kenosha, Portland, Oakland. Minneapolis, New York: Don’t blame their Democratic mayors; they don’t have a cork. Chicago and Seattle, Albuquerque, Denver...

Verses from the Irish Peace Park

The Society
October 2, 2020
Beauty, Culture, Found Poem, Poetry
8 Comments
In the first World War, taking and holding the high ground was everything. The battle of Messines Ridge, in Belgium, took place June 7-17 1917. It took 81 years until the Irish Peace Park was unveiled there to...

On the Chinese Communist Party’s ‘Stealth Warfare’ by Damian Robin

The Society
October 1, 2020
Culture, Deconstructing Communism, Human Rights in China, Poetry
14 Comments
  Stealth Warfare in the voice of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Admire. Our virus circulates. __Our muddy money’s hand washed. Our fingers whisk jobs from your plates. __Our clenched fists...

Poems for the Mid-Autumn Festival 2020, by Daniel Magdalen

The Society
September 30, 2020
Beauty, Culture, Poetry
8 Comments
The Mid-Autumn Festival, also known as the Moon Festival and corresponding to the Harvest Moon in the West, falls this year on October 1.    Lanterns in the Autumn Dark Mid-Autumn's guests head...

‘Postponement’ and Other Poetry by C.B. Anderson

The Society
September 29, 2020
Beauty, Culture, Poetry
17 Comments
  Postponement I disappoint some folks of whom I’m fond, But I, in turn, am irritated by The nebulous assurance that beyond This life, in mansions somewhere in the sky, I’ll have another chance...

A Poem on Toxic Masculinity: ‘Our Worthy Sons’ by Susan Jarvis Bryant

The Society
September 28, 2020
Culture, Deconstructing Communism, Poetry
61 Comments
Our Worthy Sons dedicated to Samuel Our worthy sons should never be ashamed Of who they are and who they’re meant to be. For far too long men’s gender has been blamed In wars that weaponize...

‘Odyssey of Theodicy’ and Other Poetry by Peter Venable

The Society
September 28, 2020
Beauty, Culture, Poetry
3 Comments
  Odyssey of Theodicy It is a strange fact, clearly biblical— In this case God’s will is most puzzling: At times, He moves mountains with miracles, But may not remove the cup of suffering. A...

‘Reflections of an Aging Moon’ and Other Poetry by Sally Cook

The Society
September 27, 2020
Beauty, Humor, Poetry
25 Comments
Reflections of an Aging Moon Great brassy stalks of varicolored horns Blow notes to keep the bees awake at noon. Immersed in gaudy zinnia’s stippled forms, They dance and flit, in homage to the...

‘The Winds of Time’ by David Paul Behrens

The Society
September 26, 2020
Beauty, Culture, Poetry
17 Comments
  The winds of time will cease to blow, The shining moon will cease to glow, As history comes to an end; Eternity waits 'round the bend. The books and minds of all mankind Will over time, be...

‘Dreams on the Horizon’ and Other Poetry by Dave Irby

The Society
September 25, 2020
Beauty, Poetry
12 Comments
  Dream on the Horizon I sail the ocean toward the setting sun to find my dreams that hide within the sky. And I will travel till my days are done, to live just one before I say goodbye. I search...

On Troublemakers: Two Translations from Phaedrus, by Terry L. Norton

The Society
September 24, 2020
Children's, Culture, Essays, Poetry, Translation
9 Comments
On Troublemakers: Two Translations* from the Latin Poet Phaedrus, Freedman of Augustus (first century A.D.) Translator’s Prologue These little tales from ancient Rome Concern those who would foment...

‘Castles in Our Heads’ and Other Poetry by Talbot Hook

The Society
September 23, 2020
Beauty, Poetry
15 Comments
  Castles in Our Heads The old Italians once long held The mind as ordered hall; And in their arm-chair coffers swelled A wealth beyond recall. Each room was filled with hint and clue To trigger...

A Poem on Trump’s Reaction to Ginsburg’s Death, by Susan Jarvis Bryant

The Society
September 22, 2020
Beauty, Culture, Poetry
43 Comments
  A Lesson Learned from Trump “We are all equal in the presence of death.” ---Publilius Syrus (100 BC) Today I learned a lesson from the one Whose acid tongue has beaten down the best; A man...

A Poem on the Death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg (1933-2020), by Joe Tessitore

The Society
September 22, 2020
Beauty, Culture, Poetry
13 Comments
Supreme Farewell As every king and peasant must, A justice stands before the Just. We bid farewell to Sister Ruth, Who trembles now before the Truth.     Joe Tessitore is a retired New...

‘In the Midst of Life We Are in Death,’ a Poem by Cynthia Erlandson

The Society
September 22, 2020
Beauty, Culture, Poetry
14 Comments
  “In the Midst of Life We are in Death.” --Book of Common Prayer, The Burial of the Dead In sure and certain hope, we toss The soil in, and bless the dead. The final sentences; that pause Of...

‘At the Supper Table of a Progressive’ and Other Poetry by Alexander King Ream

The Society
September 21, 2020
Culture, Deconstructing Communism, Humor, Poetry
1 Comment
  At the Supper Table of a Progressive They understood riots and death and what's more, "Adore them all really," and down to the core, So dropping my napkin to grant them the same, I upset their...

Ekphrastic Economy: A Review of Memoirs of a Witness Tree, by Randal A. Burd, Jr.

The Society
September 20, 2020
Essays, Poetry, Reviews
6 Comments
Memoirs of a Witness Tree, by Randal A. Burd, Jr. Kelsay Books, 2020 by Andrew Benson Brown Reading Aristotle’s Poetics is in some ways a curious experience for the practitioner of poetry. In this...

‘Feeding Time’ and Other Poetry by James A. Tweedie

The Society
September 19, 2020
Coronavirus, Culture, Deconstructing Communism, Humor, Poetry
23 Comments
  Feeding Time Chickens feed on chicken feed. Birds on birdseed, yes-indeed! Cattle feed on cattle feed, Twitters feed on Twitter feed. People feed on many things, Avocados, onion rings, Water...

A Poem On Nancy’s Visit to a Salon, Violating Covid Restrictions, by Sarban Bhattacharya

The Society
September 18, 2020
Coronavirus, Culture, Humor, Poetry
5 Comments
  There’s no age bar on titivating hair, Apart from putting rouge on wrinkled cheek. A Speaker has the right to looking fair, And prune her brunette hair once in a week. Pandemics come and go,...

‘The Church is Locked on Easter Day’ and Other Poetry by Benjamin Thomas Cepican

The Society
September 18, 2020
Beauty, Coronavirus, Culture, Deconstructing Communism, Humor, Poetry
7 Comments
  The Church is Locked on Easter Day a rondeau The Church is locked on Easter Day Despite the stone being rolled away. The Christ awakes to greet the poor But they cannot get through the door To go...

A Poem on the Laundering of Drug Money, and Other Poetry by Rod Walford

The Society
September 17, 2020
Beauty, Culture, Poetry
10 Comments
  Lucrative On the Laundering of Drug Money As commodities go, you are harmless enough Whether tendered in coin or in crinkly stuff. But without you it seems that the world will not turn Men consort...

‘To Those Who Condemn Coleridge for Using Opium’ by Joseph S. Salemi

The Society
September 16, 2020
Beauty, Culture, Humor, Poetry
26 Comments
Weave a circle round him thrice, __And close your eyes with holy dread, __For he on honey-dew hath fed, And drunk the milk of Paradise. —Coleridge, “Kubla Khan” Sam Coleridge smoked opium. Ho...

‘Logos, Rising’ by Michael Witcoff

The Society
September 15, 2020
Beauty, Culture, Deconstructing Communism, Poetry
3 Comments
  When Logos lived within the heart of man, Then beauty bloomed and flowered forth at will--- And every house was built upon a plan; Order’s essence, captured and distilled. Then Lucifer, in...

Three Summer Senryu by Matt O’Hays

The Society
September 14, 2020
Culture, Deconstructing Communism, Haiku and Senryu, Humor, Poetry
3 Comments
  July 4, 2020 A monument falls Rioters have no remorse What happened this fourth?     Summer 2020 Sunny days are here! The beach is ideal and near. It’s Fall...

‘London’s Docklands, Pre-Gentrification’ and Other Poetry by Peter Austin

The Society
September 13, 2020
Culture, Humor, Poetry
15 Comments
  London’s Docklands, Pre-Gentrification from a sonnet by Wordsworth Earth has not anything to show more foul Unless it be the same neath fog and rain; But no, for like Rasputin’s reechy...

‘Losing It’ and Other Poetry by Jeff Eardley

The Society
September 12, 2020
Beauty, Coronavirus, Culture, Humor, Poetry
13 Comments
  Losing It He staggered round his living room in stunning disbelief As for the very umpteenth time, he’d gone and lost his teeth. He cried, “They’re in here somewhere, I must search and...

‘Remember 9/11’: A Rondeau by Susan Jarvis Bryant

The Society
September 11, 2020
Culture, Poetry, Terrorism
29 Comments
  They tried and failed. They’re trying still To steal our freedom; break our will--- The terrorists who torment days With ire and fire and Hades’ blaze. Our bones burn with their evil...

A Poem on the Real Definition of Fascism: ‘Misdirection’ by Russel Winick

The Society
September 11, 2020
Culture, Deconstructing Communism, Poetry
28 Comments
  Misdirection Some dictionaries and encyclopedias still define “fascism” as a far-right system of rule. They need to look again. The Party of self-righteousness, Imbued with far-left...

A Poem for Nantes Cathedral, by Margaret Coats

The Society
September 10, 2020
Beauty, Culture, Poetry
23 Comments
For Nantes Cathedral Ravaged by Arson in July 2020, a Tribute  This holy place, where the enthusiasm of builders was succeeded by doubt following catastrophe, then hope expressed in restoration, is it not...

A Poem on the Earliest Known English Poet: Caedmon

The Society
September 9, 2020
Beauty, Culture, Poetry
4 Comments
Poet's Note: The Venerable Bede tells us that in the 7th century Caedmon, “having lived in a secular habit till he was well advanced in years, had never learned anything of versifying.” Leaving a...
  1. 4
  2. 5
  3. 6
  4. 7
  5. 8
  6. 9
  7. 10
  • Poetry Resources
  • High School Poetry
  • Translation
  • Poetry Contests
  • Poetry Forms
  • From the Society
  • Poetry Archive
  • For Educators
  • Humor
  • News of Note
  • Reviews
  • About Us
  • Symposium
  • The Raven
  • Riddles
  • Journal
  • Members
  • Terms of Use
  • The Society of Classical Poets © 2020