ODE. 
the mild and temperate emotions, which the ode may often 
occupy to advantage.’’ The ode, fays the learned bifhop 
Lowth, 
“ With eh that berathe, and words that burn,”’ 
{pects to the epic or what are 
re, and therefore ae with 
cree sect ae e ode, on the co ntrary, ftrikes with 
may be compared to a flame, which, 
af eaaly {preads itfelf on all fidesy 
and at laft Sneclics every obje& in the conflagration ; the 
eer to a flafh of lightning, which inftantaneoufly burits 
th, 
‘¢ With inftant ruin threats great Nature’ 8 frame, | 
And fhoots through every part the vivid flame. 
«‘The amazing power of lyric poetry in directing the 
paffions, ig forming the manners, in maintaining civil life, 
and particularly in exciting and cherifhing that generous 
tiara of fentiment, on which the very exiftence of public 
origin : it was the offspring of the moft vivid and the moft 
agreeable paffions of the mind, of love, joy and admiration ; 
and oe it muft have been coeval with the firft crea- 
tion of m Sentiments correfponding to fuch a compo- 
the Latin poetry ; ; moft ancient poem extant, whofe 
date is pee is the thankfgiving ode of Mofes on 
pafling the Red fea; the moft perfe& in its kind, and the 
true and gee effufion ef the joyful affections. "Thus the 
crigin of the ode may be traced into that of poetry itfelf, 
and appears to be coeval with the daca of religion, 
or more properly the creation of m The Hebrews cul- 
tivated this kind of poetry more as any other, and are 
. Hence we have the triumphal 
y 
not coeval with the republic; and young perfons t thus eau 
cated celebrated the praifes of Almighty God in lyric c 
se was, however, eadee 
Q 
ery compofition,’”? fays the prelate, of whofe admirable 
Vor. XXV. 
work we here avail ourfelves, there is none more eters 
pears ie elegant, diverfified and fublime, than the ode ; 
thefe qualities are ory jae da in the order, fentiments, 
The pri 
may afford 
e appearance of unaffeed aes and feem to 
prefer nature to art. This appearance is beft preferved by 
an exordium plain, fimple, and expreffive; by a difplay and 
detail of incidents and fentiments _ delicately and art- 
fully from each other, yet without a appearance of art ; 
and by a conclufion not pointed or epigrammatie, but finith- 
ing by a gentle turn of the fentiment where it is leaft ex. 
pected, and fometimes as it were by chance,”’ in which latter 
re{pe&t the beft Arabic odes are entitled to peculiar com- 
mendation. 
‘It is not the metre or verfification which conftitutes this 
{pecies of compofition; for unlefs all thefe circumftances 
be adverted to, itis plain that whatever be the merit of the 
production, it cannot with any propriety be termed an ode, 
any of the odes of Horace are entirely in this form, as well 
as alinoft all of thofe few which our countryman Hanmer 
has left behind him.”? « The fentiments and imagery mutt. 
be {uitable to the nature of the fubje& and the compofition, 
which is varied and unconfined by ftri@ rule or method. On 
familiar fubjects, they will be iprigntly: | florid, and agiee- 
able; on fublime topics, folemn, bold, and vivid ; onevery 
{ubje& highly elegant, expreffive, and ‘diverfified. Imagery 
from natural objecis is peculiarly adapted to the ode; hiito- 
rical common-places may alfo be admitted, as well as defcrip- 
tions lively but fhort, and (when it rifes to any uncommon 
ftrain of {ublimity ) Pogues perfonifications. The dition 
mutt be, choice and elegant 3 ; it mutt be alfo luminous, ore 
and animated ; tle. 
and be as diftin&t from the common language o of poetry, as 
the form and fafhion of the production is from the genera 
calt of poetical compofition. In this 
preffion, for which j 
confifts. 
difpenfible, according to the nature of the soar ead 
the seer diverfity of fubje&ts may re In ¢ 
Hebrew ode the numbers or verfification = probably aad 
commodated to the mufic, and agreeable to the 2 genius of the 
language ; but this i isa circum nl h w 
ot 
oe 
e lyric poets o na u autho 
aot li the diverfities of this fpecies of compefition 
o three general claffes. <« Of t cl e general 
6 
dlaseente will be {weetnefs ; of the latt, fablini ity ; = 
iddle 
e nature 
valiti¢s which 
et ate aré varie ety 
and elegance.” To the firft = thele ois Michaelié refers 
ALMS. 
bce ode confifts in the gen- 
tle and tender paffions which it excites ; in the gay'and florid 
imagery, and in the chafte and unoitentatious dition _— 
sf 
