Definition of Ode
An ode is a type of lyrical poem that originated in ancient Greece and is characterized by its formal structure and elevated style. Traditionally, odes are written to praise and glorify a person, place, thing or idea.
They are often marked by their serious tone, elaborate stanza structure, and expressive language, aiming to convey deep emotions and profound insights. The classical ode, as practiced by Greek poets like Pindar and Horace, followed strict metrical patterns, but later adaptations, such as the English ode, allowed for more flexibility in its form.
Function of Ode
The primary function of an ode in literature is to celebrate and pay tribute to its subject, whether it be a person, an event, a natural element, or an abstract concept.
Odes serve to elevate their subjects, presenting them with grandeur and reverence.
They are used to express admiration, recognition, and deep emotional connection, often delving into the poet’s personal feelings and reflections.
By doing so, odes not only highlight the importance and beauty of the subject but also provide insight into the poet’s own thoughts and emotions.
They create a bridge between the poet’s inner world and the external object of praise.
Examples of Ode in Literature
1- “Ode to a Nightingale” by John Keats
My heart aches, and a drowsy numbness pains
My sense, as though of hemlock I had drunk,
Or emptied some dull opiate to the drains
One minute past, and Lethe-wards had sunk:
‘Tis not through envy of thy happy lot,
But being too happy in thine happiness,—
That thou, light-winged Dryad of the trees
In some melodious plot
Of beechen green, and shadows numberless,
Singest of summer in full-throated ease.
In the poem, Keats explores the deep yearning and praise for the nightingale, which seems to have no worries in the world. In the first lines, the poet is seen to be overwhelmed with hopelessness and the desire to flee, which is juxtaposed to the nightingale’s song.
The poem builds the intensity of passion and struggle of the poet as well as his longing to transcend human suffering and find comfort only in the nightingale’s songs.
The delicate-looking Dryad with lighter wings, sings enchantingly from the branch of a tree in the beech grove, which depicts the onset of summer.
This bright and musical picture deepens the speaker’s dual affective tune. An ode employed here serves to illustrate a thoughtful appreciation of the theme’s happiness as well as the nature that is so often associated with it.
2- “Ode to the West Wind” by Percy Bysshe Shelley
O wild West Wind, thou breath of Autumn’s being,
Thou, from whose unseen presence the leaves dead
Are driven, like ghosts from an enchanter fleeing,
Yellow, and black, and pale, and hectic red,
Pestilence-stricken multitudes: O thou,
Who chariotest to their dark wintry bed
The wingèd seeds, where they lie cold and low,
Each like a corpse within its grave, until
Thine azure sister of the Spring shall blow
Her clarion o’er the dreaming earth, and fill
(Driving sweet buds like flocks to feed in air)
With living hues and odours plain and hill:
Wild Spirit, which art moving everywhere;
Destroyer and preserver; hear, O hear!
Shelley has depicted west wind as a powerful and transformative force of the nature. The wind is described as being a destructive or constructive force that drives both dead leaves, and seeds.
As for Shelley, he speaks about the wind and power of the wind, combined with the factor of change, and how he desires for change and inspiration. The structure of the poem and the imagery used therein draw reader’s attention to the fact that Shelley is full of admiration for nature.
3- “Ode: Intimations of Immortality from Early Childhood” by William Wordsworth
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.
It is not now as it hath been of yore;—
Turn wheresoe’er I may,
By night or day,
The things which I have seen I now can see no more.
Wordsworth think about the loss of the purity of vision of the world that people encounter as part of the process of growing up. He begins to speak of the day when nature was considered divine and everything was a marvel.
The poem focuses on the understanding of the reminiscence, melancholy, and other aspects of the poem connected with the distant childhood.
The seriousness of the work and the word ‘ode’ in the title indicate that the writer has captured the essence of the work in a highly revered form of poetry: the ode form; Wordsworth used formal language and tone in the work to express his nature worship and reflective tendencies.
See also: What is Octave in Literature?
4- “Ode 1.11” by Horace
Tu ne quaesieris, scire nefas, quem mihi, quem tibi
finem di dederint, Leuconoe, nec Babylonios
temptaris numeros. ut melius, quidquid erit, pati!
seu pluris hiemes seu tribuit Iuppiter ultimam,
quae nunc oppositis debilitat pumicibus mare
Tyrrhenum. Sapias, vina liques et spatio brevi
spem longam reseces. dum loquimur, fugerit invida
aetas: carpe diem, quam minimum credula postero.
In this famous ode, Horace tells Leuconoe not to bother herself with future as it cannot be foretold. He extols for the living of the present, and for the optimization of time to the extent that an individual has.
The Latin proverb “carpe diem” which translates in English to “seize the day” sums up the message given in the ode. This direct address to the audience, and the imperative verbs with which Horace writes, makes it seem as though he is demanding that people appreciate the present.
5- “Ode to My Socks” by Pablo Neruda
Maru Mori brought me
a pair
of socks
which she knitted herself
with her sheepherder’s hands,
two socks as soft
as rabbits.
I slipped my feet
into them
as if they were
two cases
knitted
with threads of
twilight
and goatskin.
The author turns the socks into something that seems to be incredible. These are nice trouser socks given to him by a friend: Clothing is described using vivid and sensuous qualifiers that relate to the warmth of the item.
This poem is actually an appreciation and a celebration of simple things in life. The language that has been used to write this poem is rather simple and common but what has made this poem to stand out is the vividness of the details and how the effectiveness of making even the ordinary things look and feel special and important.
6- “Ode to Aphrodite” by Sappho
Immortal Aphrodite, on your intricately brocaded throne,
child of Zeus, weaver of snares, I implore you,
do not dominate my heart with grief,
O queen, with pain or sorrow
but come—if ever before
having heard my voice from afar
you listened, and leaving your father’s
golden house, came,
yoking your chariot. Lovely swift
sparrows drew you over the black earth
from the sky through the midst of heaven,
whirling their wings into a blur of movement.
Rapidly they arrived. And you, O blessed goddess,
a smile on your immortal face,
asked what had happened this time,
why did I call again,
and what did I especially desire
for myself in my frenzied heart:
“Whom this time am I to persuade
to your love? Who, O
Sappho, is wronging you?
This piece of work is an ode from ancient Greek poet Sappho who wants Aphrodite, the goddess of love to help her in matters of the heart.
The poem reveals the types of feeling that the poet belongs to and show how the goddess comes from heaven to help the poet. Sappho’s addressing the goddess Aphrodite in the manner which is frank and personal plus the strong, complex imagery, captures the passion and devotion to the goddess.
Two Literary Devices Related to Ode
1- Apostrophe
Apostrophe is a figure of speech by which the speaker talks to a person, an idea, an object which is not a living one and which cannot reply. This device is mainly applied in odes and serves to bring passion and perceived personal address that makes poets enunciate sincere emotions and ideas.
Example:
In “Ode on a Grecian Urn” by Keats, the poet addresses the urn directly by saying, “Thou still unravish’d bride of quietness, / Thou foster-child of Silence and slow Time.” This apostrophe allows Keats to explore the themes of stability and beauty in the art.
2- Personification
Personification refers to the act of attributing human qualities on animals, things or ideas. This device is most often applied in odes to bring higher associations and make the reader familiar with the subject.
Example:
In “Ode to the West Wind” by Shelley, the wind is personified as a strong and divine force: “O wild West Wind, thou breath of Autumn’s being.” The author attributes human qualities to the wind and emphasizes its dynamic and recalibrating power.
See also: Literary Devices That Start With O
