Pastoral poetry is a very ancient genre of poetry.
It deals with the loves and lives of shepherds and shepherdesses, and other such country folk. They live far from towns, and spend their lives singing, sometimes mourning the loss of a sheep or a fellow shepherd or a love affair that has gone wrong.
The countryside is idealized, since writers of the genre are usually city people.
It is simple and the poetic expression uses a set of conventions that has varied little over the centuries.
Sometimes, it is used symbolically. Often the shepherd is a poet; his songs become his poetry.
A typical theme is the corruption of city life, and, through this theme, political statements are sometimes made.