Lord Randall, Get Up and Bar the
Door, Edward, Edward

Common Characteristics of Ballads
1.
An exciting or tragic subject like love,
2.
3.
death, or supernatural
Details are left out
Contains 1 or more Refrains – a word,
4.
line, or group of lines that is repeated throughout the ballad
Mysterious events

Background
 This ballad was written in the Middle Ages. In the ballad, a young man and his loyal hunting dogs get sick after eating dinner. Food poisoning and stomach illnesses were very common problems in the middle ages. No refrigeration and unclean habits made it hard to keep foods as safe as we can today
 This ballad was written in an old Scottish version of English. Some of the words may seem incomplete compared to the language we speak today.

As you read Lord Randall identify the characteristics of a ballad within it using the chart below and answer the questions that follow.
Ballad Features Example from “Lord Randall
Sad Story
Missing Details
Mysterious events
Refrains
1. What is happening in each stanza? (Paraphrase)
2. What are the incomplete words in the first three stanzas?
3. What are the modern English spellings of the words in number 2?
4. What does each refrain tell us?
5. Why do you believe the author wrote this poem?

The reason that an author writes.

Details such as dialogue, images, or repeated words can help us guess the purpose of a piece of literature

There are six common purposes for writing.

D
A
T
– describe something or someone
– analyze something (examine critically)
– tell something
P
I
E
–
Persuade someone
–
Inform someone of something (How to)
-
Entertain
NOTE: author’s can have several purposes in one writing they are not locked into just one

Type of literature
An autobiography by a woman who grew up in poverty and became a successful business owner
A children’s book about a rabbit who travels in space
A collection of Native
American Myths
A consumer guide about different types of cars that are on the market
A book about American soldiers who fought in
World War II
Author’s Purpose

Background

The story in this ballad exists in many versions in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East - perhaps illustrating the universal theme sometimes
 called the battle of the sexes.
Goodman and goodwife are terms that were commonly applied to married men and women.

The story takes place around November 11,
Martinmas, or the feast of Saint Martin of Tours, which was usually celebrated with a big meal

As you read, note details that help you determine the purposes of the ballad. Use the chart below to record your findings. In the third row, identify for each ballad the most powerful and significant detail that led to your interpretation of the ballad’s purpose.
Item
Details
Get Up and Bar the Door
Purpose/ explanation
Most Powerful and
Significant Detail

The difference between what is expected and what actually happens

If the shortest kid on the basketball team was the best player or the firehouse caught on fire this would be ironic because it is not what we expect to happen

There are three types of Irony: Verbal,
Situational, and Dramatic

1. Verbal Irony 2. Situational Irony 3. Dramatic Irony
Saying on thing but meaning another
(kind of like sarcasm)
 A man who hunts humans says “oh yes.. I have electricity. We try to be civilized here.
When a situation turns out to be the opposite of what you expected
 “It’s like rain on your wedding day”
 When your standing next to a house that is falling down and you say,
“Now that is a mansion.”
 “Winning the lottery and dying the next day”
 The surprise ending is situational irony (SAW)
When the reader or audience knows something the character does not
 We knew that Juliet wasn’t dead but Romeo did not
 In horror movies we know the killer is in the house when the characters do not

Listen to the song and identify as many ironic statements as possible. When finished explain why each statement is ironic.

Background
• Edward is a traditional murder ballad existing in several variants.
• In English its versions were collected by Francis James Child as
Child ballad number 13
• It is about a young man who is questioned about the blood on his sword.
• After claiming the blood belongs to different animals he admits to his mother that he has killed his father.
• He declares that he is leaving never to return and that various creatures will have to fare without him.
• However, the ballad ends with a twist.

Each of the ballads below are Ironic. Identify why each ballad is ironic, which type of irony is used, and explain why it is ironic.
Lord Randall
Ironic because _________________________________________
Type of Irony ___________________________________________
Explanation of Irony _____________________________________
Get Up and Bar the Door
Ironic because _________________________________________
Type of Irony ___________________________________________
Explanation of Irony _____________________________________
Edward, Edward
Ironic because _________________________________________
Type of Irony ___________________________________________
Explanation of Irony _____________________________________