18 pages • 36 minutes read
Sharon OldsOde to Dirt
Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 2016A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Further Reading & Resources
Related Poems
"Ode to the Hymen" by Sharon Olds (2016)
Another ode from her collection Odes, “Ode to the Hymen” uses similar figures of speech and literary devices as “Ode to Dirt.” For instance, in “Ode to the Hymen,” partway through the poem, Olds falls into an empathetic, intimate address, stating, “Dear wall, / dear gate, dear stile, dear Dutch door” (Lines 14-15). As another of Olds’s odes, this poem is important to explore to understand Olds’s collection and the way she’s using the poetic form.
"What is the Earth?" by Sharon Olds (1999)
This is an important poem about the earth to compare to “Ode to Dirt,” “What is the Earth?” is from Sharon Olds’s 1999 collection Blood, Tin, Straw: Poems. “What is the Earth?” repeatedly attempts to define the earth and its placement in the universe, but the poem continually doubles back on itself, indicating the complexity of the topic.
"1954" by Sharon Olds (1999)
Another poem in which dirt makes an appearance, “1954” is a very different poem from “Ode to Dirt,” but offers an interesting contrast to the way Olds’s speaker confronts and characterizes dirt. Again, Olds concentrates on the speaker’s relationship to dirt, which “then” (Line 1) was a relationship of fear. Like “Ode to Dirt,” “1954” spins outward to incorporate a commentary on dirt as the “home planet” (Line 31) by the poem’s close.
Further Literary Resources
"TEDx Talk" by Sharon Olds
In this talk, Sharon Olds discusses the place her poetry occupies—a place she calls the “in between.” These places have inspired and driven her poetry, including her collection, Odes in which “Ode to Dirt” appears. In this talk, Olds also reads and discusses her poem “Ode to the Hymen.”
"Sharon Olds, America’s Brave Poet of the Body" by John Freeman
In this essay, John Freeman speaks to the topics that Sharon Olds chooses to address—that of often provocative topics of the body, sex, love, children, and family. Chronicling Sharon Olds’s life and formative moments of her past, Freeman examines Olds’s poetry, citing her bravery at tackling such controversial, often rejected topics, and celebrating her poems as valuable pieces of art.
"The Unarrestable Development of Sharon Olds" by Tony Hoagland
Tony Hoagland discusses Sharon Olds’s poetry—both its popularity and its criticism—in this essay. He dives into the way her poetry has been received. This is an important look at how Olds’s poetry earns its place within the larger scope of the poetic world.
Listen to Poem
“Ode to Dirt” read by Sharon Olds
Listen to Sharon Olds read her poem in this live reading for the On Being Project.
Related Titles
By Sharon Olds
