Social Commentaries

To Labor

by Charlotte Perkins Gilman 1860–1935

From In This Our World (1893; 5th ed. 1914)

Social Commentaries

Shall you complain who feed the world?
Who clothe the world?
Who house the world?
Shall you complain who are the world,
Of what the world may do?
As from this hour
You use your power,
The world must follow you!

The world’s life hangs on your right hand!
Your strong right hand!
Your skilled right hand!
You hold the whole world in your hand.
See to it what you do!
Or dark or light,
Or wrong or right,
The world is made by you!

Then rise as you never rose before!
Nor hoped before!
Nor dared before!
And show as was never shown before,
The power that lies in you!
Stand all as one!
See justice done!
Believe, and Dare, and Do!

MLA

Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. “To Labor.” Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/gilman/135/.

Chicago

Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. “To Labor.” Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/gilman/135/.

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