I know exactly what you’re thinking: didn’t we just talk about poetry themes? Well, yes and no. We talked about poetry forms, but today I want to talk about how certain types of poetry have specific themes. Here are some examples:
Epics.
You would probably recognize an epic if you saw one. You might have even studied a few in school. How about Beowulf or The Odyssey? An epic is a long-form narrative poem where the subject matter often includes heroics and adventure.
Pastoral Poetry.
Pastoral poetry is poetry that’s about nature or something in nature. A lot of modern poets still write pastoral poetry pretty consistently, although it was much more popular with the classic poets.
Elegy.
An elegy is a poem written about death or in remembrance of a person who has passed away.
Ode.
An ode is a poem written for someone (or something) that’s not dead.
Lyric Poetry.
Probably the most common form of poetry, lyric poetry is poetry that’s about feelings or emotions.
Ballad.
A ballad is a form of narrative poetry that can either be a poem or a song. It’s a very melodic form of poetry.
There are all kinds of themes in poetry, and while these are just examples of how certain types of poetry go hand-in-hand with certain themes, there are no concrete rules in creative writing. You can do whatever you want.