Historical Ballads:
* Focus on real events: They often tell stories about historical figures, battles, or significant events.
* Examples: "Sir Patrick Spens," "Robin Hood," "The Battle of Otterburn."
* Often based on folklore or legend: Historical ballads can blend fact and fiction, incorporating elements of oral tradition and popular belief.
Nonhistorical Ballads:
* Focus on fictional stories: They tell stories about imaginary characters, events, or settings.
* Examples: "The Twa Corbies," "The Cruel Mother," "The Wife of Usher's Well."
* Often explore themes of love, loss, revenge, and supernatural elements.
Key Characteristics of Ballads:
* Narrative: Ballads are primarily story-telling poems.
* Simple language: They use straightforward language, often with repetition and refrains.
* Focus on dialogue: Dialogue plays a crucial role in advancing the plot and developing characters.
* Traditional form: They often follow a specific form, like the common ballad meter (alternating iambic tetrameter and iambic trimeter lines).
In summary: Whether a ballad is historical or nonhistorical depends on the subject matter and the intent of the ballad writer.