04-26-2015, 05:18 AM
I just noticed in Erthona's response to a poem (Tis a Grand Day to Die) on one of the boards a reference to an old poem " Lord Randall" .
Erthona says in connection with the submitted poem " ...it would be accentual verse with varying line length. It is similar to such ballads as "Lord Randall" (see below) circa mid 1600's, where the last line is repeated. This was fine in that oral tradition, however as poetry has moved more towards a literary form and away from the oral storytelling form, the repetition becomes more obvious, less effective and seen more as an affectation."
Lord Randall
"Oh where ha'e ye been, Lord Randall my son?
O where ha'e ye been, my handsome young man?"
"I ha'e been to the wild wood: mother, make my bed soon,
For I'm weary wi' hunting, and fain wald lie down."
"Where gat ye your dinner, Lord Randall my son?
Where gat ye your dinner, my handsome young man?"
"I dined wi' my true love; mother, make my bed soon,
For I'm weary wi' hunting, and fain wald lie down."
"What gat ye to your dinner, Lord Randall my son?
What gat ye to your dinner, my handsome young man?"
"I gat eels boiled in broo: mother, make my bed soon,
For I'm weary wi' hunting, and fain wald lie down."
"What became of your bloodhounds, Lord Randall my son?
What became of your bloodhounds, my handsome young man?"
"O they swelled and they died: mother, make my bed soon,
for I'm weary wi' hunting, and fain wald lie down."
"O I fear ye are poisoned, Lord Randall my son!
O I fear ye are poisoned, my handsome young man!"
"O yes, I am poisoned: mother, make my bed soon,
For I'm sick at the heart, and I fain wald lie down
I was struck by the remarkable resemblance this bears, particularly in the opening lines, to Bob Dylan's " A Hard Rain's A Gonna Fall" (well actually the other way around)
A Hard Rain's A Gonna Fall
Oh, where have you been my blue-eyed son,
Oh, where have you been, my darling young one?
I`ve stumbled on the side of twelve misty mountains,
I`ve walked and I`ve crawled on six crooked highways,
I`ve stepped in the middle of seven sad forests,
I`ve been out in the front of a dozen dead oceans,
I`ve been ten thousand miles in the mouth of a graveyard.
And it`s a hard, it`s a hard, it`s a hard, it`s a hard, It`s a hard rain`s a gonna fall.
etc
etc
Dylan too ends each verse with the same last line, so I assume that too is accentual verse, but does anyone else notice the similarity in the opening lines of the lyric?
Psyve
Erthona says in connection with the submitted poem " ...it would be accentual verse with varying line length. It is similar to such ballads as "Lord Randall" (see below) circa mid 1600's, where the last line is repeated. This was fine in that oral tradition, however as poetry has moved more towards a literary form and away from the oral storytelling form, the repetition becomes more obvious, less effective and seen more as an affectation."
Lord Randall
"Oh where ha'e ye been, Lord Randall my son?
O where ha'e ye been, my handsome young man?"
"I ha'e been to the wild wood: mother, make my bed soon,
For I'm weary wi' hunting, and fain wald lie down."
"Where gat ye your dinner, Lord Randall my son?
Where gat ye your dinner, my handsome young man?"
"I dined wi' my true love; mother, make my bed soon,
For I'm weary wi' hunting, and fain wald lie down."
"What gat ye to your dinner, Lord Randall my son?
What gat ye to your dinner, my handsome young man?"
"I gat eels boiled in broo: mother, make my bed soon,
For I'm weary wi' hunting, and fain wald lie down."
"What became of your bloodhounds, Lord Randall my son?
What became of your bloodhounds, my handsome young man?"
"O they swelled and they died: mother, make my bed soon,
for I'm weary wi' hunting, and fain wald lie down."
"O I fear ye are poisoned, Lord Randall my son!
O I fear ye are poisoned, my handsome young man!"
"O yes, I am poisoned: mother, make my bed soon,
For I'm sick at the heart, and I fain wald lie down
I was struck by the remarkable resemblance this bears, particularly in the opening lines, to Bob Dylan's " A Hard Rain's A Gonna Fall" (well actually the other way around)
A Hard Rain's A Gonna Fall
Oh, where have you been my blue-eyed son,
Oh, where have you been, my darling young one?
I`ve stumbled on the side of twelve misty mountains,
I`ve walked and I`ve crawled on six crooked highways,
I`ve stepped in the middle of seven sad forests,
I`ve been out in the front of a dozen dead oceans,
I`ve been ten thousand miles in the mouth of a graveyard.
And it`s a hard, it`s a hard, it`s a hard, it`s a hard, It`s a hard rain`s a gonna fall.
etc
etc
Dylan too ends each verse with the same last line, so I assume that too is accentual verse, but does anyone else notice the similarity in the opening lines of the lyric?
Psyve