There are famous poets that have inspired millions of people from all walks of life with their beautiful prose. If you have an interest in poetry for any reason then you should be familiar with the following names that are forever etched in history.

Thomas Stearns Eliot: Born in St Louis Missouri and the son of a New England family, TS Eliot was educated in the US and went on to work at the Sorbonne and Oxford's Merton college. He settled in the UK were he found work as the literary editor for the publishing house Faber and Faber and later became their director. He helped to bring poetry to the masses and his name will forever be listed amongst the most influential poets of the twentieth century.

William Blake: More than just a poet, William Blake was also recognized as a painter as well as a mystic. He claimed that he was influenced by divine forces. Such radical views caused damage to his reputation at the time but after his death his talent become known far and wide. Perhaps his most famous prose was The Tiger.

Robert Frost: One of the most influential American pets of the early twentieth century, Robert frost received no less than four Pulitzer prizes for his work. Taking influence primarily from life in rural New England, his words often explore philosophical thoughts as well as the social issues of the time.

William Butler Yeats: A noble prize winning poet, William Butler Yeats was born in the capital of Ireland to a protestant family. His father was a pre-eminent painter and his mother came from a wealthy Irish family. His early years were spent equally in County Sligo as well as London. It was this constant flux that inspired some of his greatest works.

Emily Dickinson: Though only seven of her poems were published in her lifetime, Emily Dickinson is now hailed as an influential writer. Often dubbed a nun because of her reclusive ways her prose touched on such subjects as immortality and death.

Allen Ginsberg: A poet for the modern age, Allen Ginsberg was born in Newark, New Jersey, and grew up in a household dominated by his mother's mental illnesses. His work helped pave the way for many influential writers and artists.

Edgar Allen Poe: A pioneer of the American romantic movement, Edgar Allen Poe is best known for his poems and short stories that have morbid and dark themes. Also he is often referred to as the father of detective fiction.