Odes

Odes are easy. They date back to the ancient Greeks, and a poet named Pindar, who lived from 522-442 bc. His subject matter revolved around the great heroes and games that were common in that period of antiquity. The Olympics would be one example. While his odes had a very strict style, the ensuing centuries have left them with an almost limitless form. The only thing that remains common to all odes is that they take the form of an address and are exalted in their emotion and expression. 

Most odes are written as a lyrical poem in rhymed stanzas. Pindar's odes have a strict stanza structure of strophe, antistrophe, and epode. This strict structure has been loosened over the years, with the only common element being the lyrical rhymed stanzas and the exalted address. 

Keats's Ode on a Grecian Urn is a fine an example of an ode.