What is ode?
An ode is a type of lyric poem. It is an address to someone or something. It is elevated in style, elaborate in stanzaic structure and serious in its subject. Odes were written to praise or glorify something or someone.
The word ‘ode’ is derived from Greek word ‘aeidein’ which means ‘to sing’ or ‘to chant’.
Meaning of the following:
Elevated in style: Grand in style
Elevated means: It expresses deep emotion or contemplation on a specific subject.
Elaborate in stanzaic structure means: Praising or glorifying
Features of an ode:
- Odes are often ceremonial and formal in tone.
- They are solemn and serious.
- Ode stands for the act misapplying words in an attempt to use fine language malapropism.
- They can be sung or chanted.
Three complex stanzas or three sections of ode:
- Strophe: In strophe dancers move in rhythm to the left. It is the first part of ode. In this two or more lines are repeated.
- Antistrophe: In antistrophe dancers move in rhythm to the right. It is the middle part of the ode.
- Epode: In epode dancers do not move to any direction but the stand still. It is the concluding part of an ode.
Strophe and antistrophe have same meter and length but epode has different meter and length.
Types of Ode:
- Pindaric Ode (Regular Ode): Examples: These odes are modelled on the songs by the chorus in Greek Drama. It is a learned imitation of Pindar’s form. Pindaric odes are known for their complexity, emotive language and irregular line lengths and rhyme scheme. This form of ode was introduced in England by Ben Jonson in 1629. Pindar’s odes were ‘encomiastic’ or written to praise or glorify. Pindaric odes are also known as Heroic Odes. These odes have three sections: (a) Strophe (b) Antistrophe (d) Epode Examples: (a) The Progress of Poesy by Thomas Gray (b) The Bard: A Pindaric Ode by Thomas Gray (c) TO the Immortal Memory and Friendship of that Noble Pair by Ben Jonson
- Irregular Ode: This form of ode was introduced by Abraham Cowley in 1656. This ode imitates the Pindaric style and matter but doesn’t triad. Each stanza has its own pattern of varying line lengths, number of lines and rhyme scheme. Examples: Ode on Intimations of Immortality by William Wordsworth
- Horatian Ode: This form or type of ode was named after the Roman poet Horace. It is a short lyric poem written in stanzas of two or four lines and more thoughtful than a Pindaric ode. It is meant for personal enjoyment than a stage performance. Horatian Odes are calm, meditative and colloquial: They are homosphoric (written in single repeated stanza form). Examples (a) Marvell’s ‘An Horatian Ode upon Cromwell’s Return from Ireland’ (b) Keats’ ‘To Autumn’
Other examples of odes:
- On the Nativity of Christ – John Milton
- Ode to Nepoleon Bonaparte – Lord Byron
- Ode on the Death of a Favourite Cat – Thomas Gray
- Dejection: An Ode (Pindaric ode) – S.T. Coleridge
- To a Skylark – PB Shelley
- Ode on a Grecian Urn (Irregular ode) – John Keats
- Ode to Confederate Dead – (Horatian ode) – Allen Tate
- Ode on Solitude (Horatian ode) – Alexander Pope
- Ode on Duty (Horatian ode) – William Wordsworth
- Ode to the West Wind (Irregular ode) – PB Shelley
- Ode to Autumn (Horatian ode) – John Keats
- Ode to a Nightingale (Horatian ode) – John Keats