Poetic Form
Eclogue
From Greek eklogai: selections. The form was established by Theocritus and codified by Virgil; the Renaissance eclogue often concealed political allegory.
Definition
A short pastoral poem, often in dialogue between shepherds, dealing with rural life in an idealised setting.
Example
Virgil's ten Eclogues (37 BC); Spenser's The Shepheardes Calender (1579).