8 romantic poets you should read

By Afiur
January 26, 2026

Charlotte Smith

A key but often overlooked Romantic poet, Smith helped shape the movement with her deeply emotional sonnets focused on nature and personal sorrow.Source: wikipedia

John Clare

Known as the “peasant poet,” Clare wrote vividly about rural life, nature, and loss, offering an intimate and grounded Romantic voice.Source: wikipedia

John Keats

Keats’ poems are rich with beauty, longing, and mortality. His sensuous imagery and emotional depth make him one of the most loved Romantic poets.Source: wikipedia

Lord Byron

Byron brought passion, rebellion, and wit into Romantic poetry. His larger than-life persona and emotionally charged verse defined the Byronic hero.Source: wikipedia

Percy Bysshe Shelley

A radical thinker and idealist, Shelley’s poetry celebrates freedom, revolution, and hope, often questioning authority and social injustice.Source: wikipedia

Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Known for blending imagination and the supernatural, Coleridge’s poetry explores dreams, fear, and the mysterious power of the human mind.Source: wikipedia

William Blake

Both poet and artist, Blake explored spirituality, innocence, experience, and social critique through visionary and symbolic poetry.Source: wikipedia

William Wordsworth

Often called the heart of Romanticism, Wordsworth wrote about nature, memory, and emotion in simple yet profound language that reshaped English poetry.Source: wikipedia

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