Are There Any Poems That Use 'Unfurled Wings' As A Motif?

I stumbled on this theme while reading William Blake’s 'America: A Prophecy'—the line 'the fiery limbs, the flaming hair, shot like the sinking sun into the western sea' isn’t about wings directly, but the imagery of expansion feels adjacent. Then there’s modern stuff like Ocean Vuong’s 'Someday I’ll Love Ocean Vuong,' where he writes, 'Don’t worry. Just call it horizon / & you’ll never reach it.' The idea of stretching toward something, wings or not, resonates similarly. Funny how a single phrase can open up so many interpretations.

Ever read 'The Phoenix’s Flight' by Elizabeth Jennings? It’s all about rebirth, and the wings unfurling are this gorgeous symbol of renewal. Or in gaming lore—like the phoenix summon in 'Final Fantasy'—where the wings spreading signal a fresh start. Makes me wonder if the poets borrowed from myths or the other way around.

The imagery of 'unfurled wings' pops up in poetry more often than you'd think, and it always carries this visceral sense of liberation or transformation. One that immediately comes to mind is Emily Dickinson’s 'Hope is the thing with feathers'—though she uses 'feathers,' the metaphor leans into that same expansive, soaring energy. Then there’s Tennyson’s 'The Eagle,' where the line 'He clasps the crag with crooked hands' precedes the bird’s dramatic descent, but the implied spread of wings feels like an unfurling in motion. Contemporary poets like Mary Oliver also riff on this motif; her work 'Wild Geese' doesn’t use the exact phrase, but the idea of 'softening into the wings' of the world hits a similar note. It’s fascinating how this single image can evoke anything from freedom to vulnerability, depending on the poet’s lens.

I’ve always been drawn to how 'unfurled wings' can symbolize both readiness and fragility—like in Rainer Maria Rilke’s 'Duino Elegies,' where angels are described with terrifying, overwhelming wings. It’s not just about flight; sometimes it’s about exposure, the moment before taking off or being seen. Even in manga and anime, you see this trope echoed—think of the phoenix in 'Saint Seiya' or the winged creatures in 'Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind.' The crossover between poetry and visual storytelling here makes the motif feel even more universal.

Oh, absolutely! My favorite is probably 'The Windhover' by Gerard Manley Hopkins—it’s not the exact phrase, but when he writes 'the achieve of, the mastery of the thing!' about a falcon in flight, you can practically see those wings unfurling against the sky. There’s also a lesser-known poem by Sara Teasdale, 'Flight,' where she describes swallows opening their wings 'like a fan of silver fire,' which gives me chills. I love how poets twist this image to fit different moods: sometimes it’s triumphant, other times delicate. Even in song lyrics, like in Florence + the Machine’s 'Bird Song,' the idea lingers. It’s wild how one visual can stretch across so many art forms.