Sorrow Is Not My Name

"To the Young Who Want to Die" by Gwendolyn Brooks (1986)

The poem Gay’s “Sorrow Is Not My Name” answers is a direct address to the contemporary young people of Brooks’ time, begging them to resist the pull of death and violence in favor of seeking out and celebrating current and future life. At an event celebrating the poet Emily Dickinson, Brooks gave a reading of a number of poems, including “To the Young Who Want to Die.” You can listen to the recording of her reading at the Dickinson Electronic Archives.

"A Poem in which I Try to Express My Glee at the Music My Friend Has Given Me" by Ross Gay (2011)

Another poem from Gay’s 2011 collection Bringing the Shovel Down, “A Poem in which I Try to Express My Glee at the Music My Friend Has Given Me” utilizes meandering free verse, anaphora, and lush sound texture to express joy and evoke the powerful, full-body experience of music.

"A Small Needful Fact" by Ross Gay (2015)

Published in 2015 as a part of Split This Rock’s The Quarry: A Social Justice Poetry Database, “A Small Needful Fact” is a single stanza, one sentence poem that takes Eric Garner as its subject, offering an exquisite, human portrait of the man in the wake of his death at the hands of a New York City police officer.