Ballad

Etymology and Meanings of Literary Device of Ballad

Etymologically, the term ballad has entered the English language from old French where it was ballada, a poem accompanied dancing. The term was derived from a Latin term, ballare which means to dance. A medieval Scottish term ballares also means to dance which is the source of ballet, another related term. In short, the term ballad finds its source in almost all ancient languages.

Definition of Literary Device of Ballad

As a literary term, a ballad is a type of song written in verse to be sung with musical instruments or without them. It is a narrative about some national, tribal, or regional topic or even a folk song. In Ireland and Britain, ballads were a popular form of poetry or song sung on different occasions.

Types of Literary Device of Ballads

There are five major types of literary device, ballads.

1. Traditional ballads
2. Broadside ballads
3. Literary ballads
4. Folk ballads
5. Mythical ballads

Literary Examples of Literary Device of Ballad

Example # 1

From “As You Came from the Holy Land” by Sir Walter Ralegh

As you came from the holy land

Of Walsingham,

Met you not with my true love

By the way as you came?

“How shall I know your true love,

That have met many one,

I went to the holy land,

That have come, that have gone?”

These are the first two stanzas of the popular ballad of Sir Walter Ralegy “As You Came from the Holy Land.” It shows that this ballad is not only melodious but also very enchanting. It has a religious touch and could be with any musical instrument. Therefore, this is a good example of a ballad.

Example # 2

From “La Belle Dame sans Merci” by John Keats

O what can ail thee, knight-at-arms,

       Alone and palely loitering?

The sedge has withered from the lake,

       And no birds sing.

This is the stanza of the poem “La Belle Dame Sans Merci” by John Keats. Its rhyme scheme, meter, and notes show that it is a perfect type of ballad that could be sung on different occasions through different instruments.

Example # 3

“The Ballad of a Bachelor” by Ellis Parker Butler

Listen, ladies, while I sing
The ballad of John Henry King.

John Henry was a bachelor,
His age was thirty-three or four.

Two maids for his affection vied,
And each desired to be his bride,

And bravely did they strive to bring

Unto their feet John Henry King.

These lines occur in the ballad of Ellis Parker Butler. It also shows perfect rhyme scheme, rhythm as well as meter. Therefore, it is a good example of a national ballad having musical qualities.

Example # 4

From “Summoned by the King” by William Kite

“We are told to believe in the afterlife
Yet no one from death has returned
How can there be any life at all
Once the body has been burned”

“I watched my Father’s funeral fire
The flames lit up the sky
I know I shall not look upon him again
So is the after life a lie?”

These two stanzas occur in the ballad “Summoned by the King.” It has a good rhyme scheme of ABCB in both stanzas, and both are in a perfect rhythm. Therefore, this shows the skill of William Kite in writing a ballad.

Example # 5

From “Ballad of the Green Berets” by Barry Sadler and Robin Moore

Fighting soldiers from the sky
Fearless men who jump and die
Men who mean just what they say
The brave men of the Green Beret

Silver wings upon their chest
These are men, America’s best
One hundred men we’ll test today
But only three win the Green Beret.

This is the song of Green Beret, the US commando team. Barry Sadler and Robin Moore have given it a perfect rhythm as well as a rhyme to align it with the motto of the Green Beret. The repetition of “the Green Beret” in both stanzas has emphasized its thematic strand of nationalism.

How to Create Ballad

1. Think about a story, having characters, dialogues, situations, themes, and background if you want a narrative.
2. Create the dialogues each in a quatrain or heroic couplets.
3. Create ABAB or some other good rhyme scheme.
4. Use pentameter or hexameter.
5. Read it aloud to align it with your and your readers’ feelings.

Benefits of Using Ballad

1. It creates a thematic idea in the minds of the readers.
2. It becomes easy to reach a wider audience having the same national or folk sentiments.
3. It makes the writers convey their messages effectively and beautifully.
4. It makes the readers absorb messages easily.

Literary Device of Ballad in Literary Theory

1. As far as literary theories are concerned, ballads have been mostly written during the time of Romanticism. Therefore, any theoretical concept could be applied to interpret a ballad.
2. Yet, formalism, readers’ response theory, deconstructionism, and structuralism are the most effective literary theories applied to ballads to properly understand their meanings.
3. It, however, does not mean that other theoretical ideas could not be applied to the ballads. A critic could apply any theoretical idea but he should better first understand the purpose of a ballad, for it could belong to a race or an indigenous community, or a queer section of the section. In these cases, it would be better to critique them through indigenous critical theory, critical race theory, or queer theory respectively.

Suggested Readings

Abrams, Meyer Howard, and Geoffrey Harpham. A Glossary of Literary Terms. Cengage Learning, 2014. Print.

Bryant, Shasta M. The Spanish Ballad in English. University Press of Kentucky, 2014. Print. Child, Francis James. The English and Scottish Popular Ballads. Vol. 5. Courier Corporation, 2013. Print.

Suggested read: Literary Device: Analogy