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According to the Oxford English Dictionary, an ode is a Greek term used for a lyric poem which is addressed to a subject whom it praises. It is written in irregular meter and is meant to be sung. Shelley's "To a skylark" falls into this category. Shelley addresses the skylark directly and praises it in elaborate terms: "Hail to thee, blythe spirit / Bird thou never wert". Shelley's language is musical, with the use of alliteration ( with the repetition of sibilant 's' sounds and soft 'l' sounds ) and assonance. He does not use a regular metrical pattern or rhyme scheme, though there is a certain pattern followed in the length of the lines in each stanza.
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