Here's why:
* Narrative: It tells a story, the tragic tale of Lucy Gray who gets lost and drowned.
* Simple Language: Wordsworth uses simple, direct language, making it accessible to a wide audience.
* Folk-like Elements: It evokes a sense of traditional folk tales with its focus on rural life, natural imagery, and a tragic theme.
* Repetition: The poem features repeated phrases and lines, which is common in ballads and contributes to its memorability.
* Stanza Structure: The poem uses the typical ballad stanza structure of four lines with an alternating rhyme scheme (ABAB).
While it is a ballad, "Lucy Gray" is also considered a lyrical ballad. This subgenre focuses on emotion and individual experience, which is evident in the poem's melancholic tone and the portrayal of Lucy's innocence and vulnerability.