“The Flower That Smiles Today” is a poem written by which English poet?

The poem titled “The Flower That Smiles Today” was written by the English poet Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792-1822). He is considered one of the second-generation Romantic poets. The poem is sometimes titled ‘Mutability’, though Shelley confusingly wrote another poem called by that same name.

The first few lines start: “The flower that smiles to-day/To-morrow dies;/ All that we wish to stay/ Tempts and then flies./ What is this world’s delight?/ Lightning that mocks the night,/ Brief even as bright.”

While many analyses and commentaries exist about this poem, a common thread and theme referenced, is about the brevity of all things including all hopes, desires, and delights the world has to offer- each is short-lived and doomed to die.

The poem continues with additional stanzas that lament the reality that virtue or decency, friendship and love are all delicate; even once you have gained them, you cannot guarantee they will last.

Shelley is regarded as one of the greatest lyric and philosophical poets in the English language. He did not experience fame during his lifetime for his poetry but popularity grew steadily following his death.

Shelley's close circle of friends included some of the most important progressive and radical thinkers of his day. As a result, most publishers and journals declined to publish his work for fear of being arrested for either blasphemy or sedition. His readership was primarily an underground audience during his day.