What's an Ode?
Charlie Mccullough
Where did the Ode come from?
According to poets.org the word "Ode" derives from the Greek word "aeidein" meaning to sing and chant. This poem was originally used in sing and dance but later used by poets to express feelings. "Greek poet Pindar is credited with inventing the ode.
What are the types of Odes?
There are three types of odes Pindaric, Horatian, and Irregualar. Pindaric poems are usually used in singing and dancing. Horatian odes are usually less formal and suited to quieter reading and theatrical productions. Irregular odes are very broad but lack the elements of a classical ode. An easy way to tell is a poem is an ode is that in the title it has the word ode in the title.
Poem Example
Row after row with strict impunity The headstones yield their names to the element, The wind whirrs without recollection; In the riven troughs the splayed leaves Pile up, of nature the casual sacrament To the seasonal eternity of death; Then driven by the fierce scrutiny Of heaven to their election in the vast breath, They sough the rumour of mortality.
Works CIted
"Poetic Form: Ode." Poets.org. Academy of American Poets, n.d. Web. 04 Dec. 2014.