An ode is a traditional, beautiful poem of praise that is dedicated to something meaningful. Usually, this “something” is ephemeral, such as love, beauty, or music.
What is an Ode?
An ode is a formal lyric poem that is written in celebration, appreciation, or dedication. They are generally directed as a specific person, place, idea, or object. Unlike other forms of poetry, the ode does not have a strict line or stanza requirement.
Traditionally they aren’t very long but encompass a variety of other structures, such as the elegy and sonnet. Usually, the tone is serious, genuine, and reflective. The subject matter, as stated above, can vary but it is always something the poet feels deserves attention.
The word “ode” comes from the Greek word “aidein,” meaning to sing. Today, we recognize three traditional ode forms. They are the Pindaric ode, the Horatian ode, and the Irregular ode.
Types of Odes
Pindaric Ode
The first, the Pindaric ode, also known as the Greek ode, derives its name from an Ancient Gree poet, Pindar, who wrote songs performed by dancers and a chorus of singers. They celebrated major events and moments in history. These songs were irregular in their length, metrical patterns, and rhyme but were consistently made up of three parts. The three sections: the strophe, antistrophe, and epode. The Ancient Greeks often accompanied their odes with music.
Horatian Ode
The next type of ode we’re going to take a look at is the Horatian. It comes from the Latin tradition of the Aeolic ode and is written with the intention of crafting a calm and contemplative tone. These odes were meant to bring peace to the reader. The ode was named for the 1st-century-BC poet Horace. These written works are usually concerned with themes of love, joy, and the act of writing. These poems are short and made up of around two quatrains.
Irregular Ode
An irregular ode is a poem that does not conform to either the structures set out in the Horatian or Pindaric forms. The verse is generally irregular, and the stanzas lack any sort of prescribed order. There is no formal rhyme scheme in this kind of ode, giving the poet the freedom to experiment with their verse.
History of the Ode in English
When considering the long history of the ode in the English language it is necessary to look back to Edmund Spenser(Poems). Best-known for his epic, The Faerie Queene, Spenser also wrote the earliest odes in the English language, ‘Epithalamium’ and ‘Prothalamium.’ Moving forward in time to the 17th century, poets like Abraham Crowley and John Dryden(Poems) took on a practice of writing variants of the Pindaric Ode form.
The ode as a form of writing gained traction in the works of poets like William Wordsworth(Bio | Poems), John Keats(Bio | Poems), and Percy Bysshe Shelley(Bio | Poems). These poets more often than not used the ode form to address emotional responses, personal fears, and pleasures. Additionally, this time period saw poets reaching out to inanimate objects and intangible forces (such as a season or emotion) as the subjects of odes as well.
How to Write an Ode
Unlike some forms of poetry, odes are fairly straightforward to compose.
- Find something meaningful. This could be an object, such as Pablo Neruda’s suit, or a feeling, like love or joy.
- Consider all the aspects of your “thing” that you appreciate. What does it do for you? How does it make you feel? What other parts of your life does it influence?
- Start writing, directing your words to the “thing” you’re interested in.
- Make sure to use plenty of adjectives and verbs while also focusing on the images you’re creating.
- Repetition is a common element in odes and could be applied in yours.
- Personification is also a useful technique to make use of.
- As always, revise and edit your poem! Share it with someone you trust and get feedback on what could be changed to make your verse more impactful.
Why Do Writers Write Odes?
Odes are used in order to express a writer’s appreciation for something. In some cases, this is something lofty, as is traditional. But, in other cases, such as with Pablo Neruda’s odes, he focuses in on incredibly important things that are generally overlooked. In his case, he thinks about suits, socks, thread, and more. Odes generally have a wide appeal, tapping into feelings that are common amongst a larger segment of the population. Contemporary poets recognized a need to move away from elaborate odes dedicated to transcendent feelings and towards the more relatable subject matter.
Examples of Odes
Ode: Intimations of Immortality from Reflections of Early Childhood by William Wordsworth
There are a few well-known examples of a Pindaric ode, including William Wordsworth’s ‘Ode: Intimations of Immortality from Reflections of Early Childhood.’ Take a look at these lines from that ode:
There was a time when meadow, grove, and stream,
The earth, and every common sight,
To me did seem
Apparelled in celestial light,
The glory and the freshness of a dream.
The poet is looking back on the past, remembering a time in which the natural world pleased his spirit and eased his heart. That time is no more, though. He looks around him at all of humanity and mourns our inability to appreciate the natural world. The “ode” is directed at a love for the natural world and elegizes the loss of its place within the human heart. Another fairly well-known example of a Pindaric ode is Thomas Gray’s ‘The Progress of Poesy.’
Read more William Wordsworth poems.
Ode on Solitude by Alexander Pope
Take a look at ‘Ode on Solitude’ by Alexander Pope(Bio | Poems) as an example of a Horatian Ode,
Happy the man, whose wish and care
A few paternal acres bound,
Content to breathe his native air,
In his own ground.
In these lines and throughout the poem, Pope expresses his appreciation for solitude and the peace it can bring about.
Explore more Alexander Pope poems.
Ode to a Nightingale by John Keats
The odes of John Keats(Bio | Poems) are some of the most famous examples of the irregular ode form. Here are a few lines from Keats’ ode ‘Ode to a Nightingale’ written in 1819:
Thou wast not born for death, immortal Bird!
No hungry generations tread thee down;
The voice I hear this passing night was heard
In ancient days by emperor and clown:
Perhaps the self-same song that found a path
Through the sad heart of Ruth, when, sick for home,
This is only one small part of what many lovers of poetry consider to be Keats’ best ode. It is dedicated, as the title suggests, to a nightingale. Throughout the poem, Keats touches on themes of life, death, and the fleeting nature of pleasure.
Discover more John Keats poems.
Some Famous Odes
Make sure to check out these fantastic examples of odes on a variety of subjects:
- ‘Ode to a Grecian Urn’ by John Keats(Bio | Poems)
- ‘Ode to the West Wind’ by Percy Bysshe Shelley(Bio | Poems)
- ‘The Lady to Her Guitar’ by Emily Brontë(Bio | Poems)
- ‘Ode to Thread’ by Pablo Neruda(Bio | Poems)
- ‘Ode on a Grayson Perry Urn’ by Tim Turnbull(Poems)
- ‘Dejection: An Ode‘ by Samuel Taylor Coleridge(Bio | Poems)
FAQs
The ode addresses a person or thing, it is formal, and it uses lofty sentiments that lend themselves to lyric poems. These poems can also be quite complex.
Odes do not have to rhyme, but most of them do. Most poets find using a rhyme scheme elevates their language and makes their work feel more dramatic and important.
‘Ode on a Grecian Urn‘ by John Keats is a famous ode written in the traditional style. Other famous odes include ‘Ode to a Thread‘ by Pablo Neruda and ‘Ode on a Grayson Perry Urn‘ by Tim Turnbull.
An ode is a poem written in praise or celebration of something. If the poem is dedicated, clearly, to a person, object, thing, or experience, it’s likely an ode.
Related Literary Terms
- Allegory – a narrative found in verse and prose in which a character or event is used to speak about a broader theme.
- Ballad – is a kind of verse, sometimes narrative in nature, often set to music and developed from 14th and 15th-century minstrelsy.
- Elegy – in literature, is a poem or song that is written in dedication to someone who has died.
- Figurative Language – refers to figures of speech that are used in order to improve a piece of writing.
