Classic and Contemporary Poetry
GOALS, by AMOS RUSSEL WELLS Poet's Biography First Line: Deep in the horrors of the north Last Line: And seeks the common good of man. Subject(s): Explorers; North Pole; Exploring; Discovery; Discoverers | ||||||||
Deep in the horrors of the North, With gleaming eyes and steady soul Heroes compel their passage forth To pierce the mystery of the pole. Superb their passion, bold their aim, But ah, what barren goals suffice! -- The echo of an empty fame, The conquest of a league of ice! Comrades of clouds, along the air Speeding the way Columbus went, Oh, latest Argonauts, that dare The one unmastered element! And yet what needless heroes they, Venturing life to find us wings, That men may have one other way To roam on fruitless wanderings! With patient eyes, the long still night, Sages through starry jungles grope, Happy, if some new speck of light Fall on the fortunate telescope. Their name is catalogued with it, The sky has one more charted spot; But no more lights on earth are lit, And star and sage are soon forgot. Ah, happy he whose ardent goal Within the human spirit lies, Who in the regions of the soul Embarks on daring enterprise! Dangers are there that arctic sea And tropic desert never know, Tempests of passion fierce and free, Waves of despair and gulfs of woe. And wings are there that soar and fly Above the snarling of the storm, To sunny reaches of the sky Where life is light and love is warm. And there are galaxies afar, World beyond world in endless range, Where never imperfections mar, And never gladness fears a change. Not in the realm of braggart gold And crowns that glitter to the eye, Are meeds that bless and joys that hold And purposes that satisfy. But happy he whose honest mind, With all he loves and all he can, Is dedicated to mankind, And seeks the common good of man. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...SHACKLETON by MADELINE DEFREES AMERICA IS HARD TO SEE by ROBERT FROST CONCERNING THE RIGHT TO LIFE by JORIE GRAHAM THE HEAD ON THE TABLE by JOHN HAINES PSALM OF THE WEST: SONNET ON COLUMBUS: 1 by SIDNEY LANIER PSALM OF THE WEST: SONNET ON COLUMBUS: 2 by SIDNEY LANIER PSALM OF THE WEST: SONNET ON COLUMBUS: 3 by SIDNEY LANIER PSALM OF THE WEST: SONNET ON COLUMBUS: 4 by SIDNEY LANIER A BATTLE SONG (WRITTEN IN THE WORLD WAR) by AMOS RUSSEL WELLS |
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