Ballad

"A ballad is a type of poem that tells a story and was traditionally set to music. English language ballads are typically composed of four-line stanzas that follow an ABCB rhyme scheme. The ballad is one of the oldest poetic forms in English" ("Ballad".)

"Many ballads have a refrain (a line or stanza that repeats throughout the poem), much like the chorus of modern day songs" ("Ballad".)

"The ballad as a musical and poetic form originated in Europe in the late middle ages—as early as the 14th century—when traveling minstrels popularized the form. Since then, many writers have adapted the ballad to their own vision for new and original compositions. As a result, many different types of ballads exist. These variations can largely be broken into three main categories that help define evolution of the ballad" ("Ballad".):

"Folk ballads are traditional ballads (such as "Tam Lin" and "Robin Hood") that existed as an oral (and often musical) tradition before they were recorded in written language. These are some of the oldest ballads, and they tend to tell stories of love and adventure" ("Ballad".)

"Lyrical ballads, also called "literary ballads", are poems that began to appear in the 18th century as a new variation on the folk ballad. Writers of lyrical ballads from the 18th to the 20th century, such as Coleridge and Poe, continued to use the "bouncy" rhythm of the iamb to tell their stories. These poets expanded the subject matter of the ballad by using lyrical ballads to tell everyday stories, rather than only stories characterized by excitement or adventure" ("Ballad".)

"Modern ballads: The word ballad is used today to describe many different types of poems and songs that tell stories, but not all modern ballads adhere to the conventions of meter or rhyme schemes that once defined the form" ("Ballad".)

"Ballad examples:

Folk ballad: "Barbara Allen"

Lyrical ballad: "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner"

Ballad: "The Ballad of Reading Gaol" ("Ballad")

Work Cited:

Bergman, Bennet. "Ballad." LitCharts. LitCharts LLC, 5 May 2017. Web. 27 Sep 2023, https://www.litcharts.com/literary-devices-and-terms/ballad

Mrs Robert's Resources, What is a Ballad? | Poetry, YouTube video. [27 Sep]. https://youtu.be/hbE2NT1wao4?si=Q3zNChIB_AIET0UA

Nikola Balážová