“The Miracle of Morning” (2020) is a poem by Amanda Gorman concerning the coronavirus pandemic and its effect on the United States. Gorman prefers this poem to be a spoken word poem. Though Gorman wrote the poem in the early days of the pandemic, it captures some of the ongoing feelings of loss and hope the pandemic inspired in the public. Like most of Gorman’s poetry, “The Miracle of Morning” is uplifting and focuses on a positive, hopeful view of the future while rejecting the negativity and division that sometimes accompanies the discussion of contemporary issues. Though not as well-known as some of her other poems, “The Miracle of Morning” is a quintessential 2020 poem that captures the essence of the time and offers a positive message from a time of great despair.

Poet Biography

Born and raised in Los Angeles, California in 1998, Amanda Gorman began her writing career at a young age. Born with a speech impediment, she used reading and writing to help her overcome her speech difficulties, and at the age of 15, she became a force in the Los Angeles poetry community.

Gorman published her first book of poetry, The One for Whom Food Is Not Enough, in 2015 and became Los Angeles’s first youth poet laureate, which honors the area’s most respected poet. Gorman then attended Harvard, where she graduated in 2020 with a degree in sociology. Throughout the 2010s, Gorman also became involved in many social justice movements, including the Black Lives Matter movement. Her work for social justice is intertwined with her poetry and continues to inform most of her work.

Gorman became a national figure in 2021 when President Joe Biden asked her to read a poem at his inauguration. She became the youngest poet to read at a presidential inauguration when she read an original poem that she composed for the event: “The Hill We Climb.” The poem advocates for national unity and progress in the face of division and violence. Gorman’s timing is poignant as the inauguration took place only days after the January 6th insurrection at the United States Capitol and at the height of the coronavirus pandemic. The poem catapulted Gorman to stardom, as the poem’s content, form, and message, as well as her reading of the poem offered comfort and hope to much of the country. Since her performance at the inauguration, Gorman has received a number of endorsement offers and other public reading opportunities, including an invitation to read a poem before the start of the Super Bowl LV football game.

Poem Text

Gorman, Amanda. “The Miracle of Morning.” 2020. Poetry.com.

Summary

The speaker opens the poem as if waking from a dream. They say they thought they would wake to a world in pain, amid a storm. Instead, they find that the morning is a “golden morning” (Line 3), full of warm sunlight. At this moment, the speaker places the reader in a hopeful world that is bright and full of light.

In the second stanza, the speaker then describes what they see in this hopeful world. They see images of community and happiness: a father jogging with his baby, a girl playing with her dog, an older woman praying the rosary and receiving a delivery of groceries from her neighbor.

In the third stanza, the speaker moves from description to prescription, saying that despite the current state of a world that brings people down, humankind has never been more closely knit. They reassure the reader, asserting that society will surely overcome its current problems; the only question is how people will come together to do so. They go on to suggest in stanza four that society is in a time of mourning, and though life can hurt people and test their strength, it cannot break them.

The next stanza acknowledges the heroes of this world in which the speaker lives. They thank everyone who contributes to society, from healthcare workers and educators to service industry workers and artists. They acknowledge the families as well as the businesses, restaurants, and hospitals that are struggling. The speaker says that society stands together to support all these people and industries.

Next, the speaker returns to the ideas of togetherness and hope. They explain that people’s true strength comes through in times of darkness and suffering and that chaos can lead to solidarity and clarity. It is through pain and suffering that people learn to love one another. Grief, they say, gives people purpose, and it is important not to suffer in vain, but to learn how to use the pain to better the world.

The speaker then suggests that readers find activities that give them hope and happiness. According to the speaker, the distance between each other will eventually lead people to be stronger and to appreciate one another more. They say it is important to read children’s books and to dance alone in order to celebrate life.

The poem concludes with a plea for people to be better individuals and to come together. The speaker believes that the challenges facing society will eventually lead people to become better humans, eventually leading to a stronger society full of kindness and hope.