American Literature / Unit 1 AML 0020 short lesson, about 20 seconds
Ballad, Ballad Stanza, and the Refrain
Captions available
The idea
A ballad is a narrative poem, usually in quatrains rhyming a b c b, which the glossary gives as its standard shape. Ballads tell a story plainly, lean on dialogue, and often carry a refrain. The witness uses Service's "The Cremation of Sam McGee".
In practice
A story in quatrains, with a repeated line.
Where people slip
The plainness is a technique, not a lack.
Your place on the trail
Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.
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