Engl Lit Forms (3)

8/13/2019 Engl Lit Forms (3)

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English Literary Forms

Impersonal Objective Poetry


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Objective Poetry

The Ballad

The Epic

The Mock-Epic The Idyll

The Dramatic Monologue


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Rime of the Ancient MarinerThe ice was here, the ice was there,The ice was all around:It cracked and growled, and roared and howled,Like noises in a swound!

At length did cross an Albatross,

Thorough the fog it came;As it had been a Christian soul,We hailed it in God's name.

He prayeth best, who loveth best

All things both great and small;

For the dear God who loveth us,

He made and loveth all.


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La Belle Dame Sans Merci

I see a lily on thy brow,With anguish moist and fever-dew,

And on thy cheeks a fading rose

Fast withereth too.I met a lady in the meads,

Full beautiful - a faery's child,Her hair was long, her foot was light,

And her eyes were wild.

(Knights who fall in love with beautiful women)


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Paradise Lost

Of Mans First Disobedience, and the FruitOf that Forbidden Tree, whose mortal tasteBrought death into the world and all our woe,

With loss of Eden, till one greater Man

Restore us, and regain the blissful Seat,Sing HeavnlyMuse, that on the secret topOf Oreb, or of Sinai, didst inspireThat Shepherd, who first taught the chosen seed,In the beginning how the Heav'ns and EarthRose out of Chaos:Or if Sion HillDelight thee more, and Siloa's Brook that flow'dFast by the Oracle of God; I thenceInvoke thy aid to my adventurous song,


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The Rape of the LockWHAT dire offence from amorous causes springs,What mighty contests rise from trivial things,

Belinda frown'd, Thalestris call'd her prude.

"To arms, to arms!" the fierce virago cries,

And swift as lightning to the combat flies.

All side in parties, and begin the attack;

Fans clap, silks rustle, and tough whalebones crack;

Heroes' and heroines' shouts confusedly rise,

And base and treble voices strike the skies.No common weapons in their hands are found;

Like gods they fight, nor dread a mortal wound.


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My Last DuchessAndrea Del Sarto

That's my last Duchess painted on the wall,Looking as if she were alive. I callThat piece a wonder, now: Fr Pandolf's handsWorked busily a day, and there she stands.

But do not let us quarrel any more,No, my Lucrezia; bear with me for once:Sit down and all shall happen as you wish.You turn your face, but does it bring your heart?I'll work then for your friend's friend, never fear,

Treat his own subject after his own way,Fix his own time, accept too his own price,And shut the money into this small handWhen next it takes mine. Will it? tenderly?Oh, I'll content him,--but to-morrow, Love!


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The Ballad

Short-story in verse Ballareto dance ( French dance songs)

Originally a song with strong narrative matter

+ dancing; Minstrel / bard sing the main parts,dancers sing the refrain; often in the form ofdialogue; audience also danced and sang

Strong dramatic element; great entertainment

Local events, loves, battles, heroic exploits,supernatural incident


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Types

Gradually, dance stoppedsong to a sittingaudienceany narrative form in ballad meterquatrain / four lined stanza with alternate rhymesfirst and third lines 8-syllabledsecond and fourth six

syllabled Folk / Popular balladsimplicity, apparent ease and

artlessness, primitive feeling

Literary Balladconscious imitation of originalpopular ballad at a later date

Broadside Ballad: Printed on one side dealt with acurrent event or person or issue and was sung to awell-known tune ( streets or country fairs)


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Folk Ballad / Popular / Authentic

Originally folk-lorenot the work of a single poet but of anumber of unknown poets / bards

Folk Ballad / Popular Balladbased on older legend or

romancepassed on orallyone to onegeneration to

generationregion to regionundergo changes

The Nut-Brown Maid ( humble love) ; Chevy-Chase (heroism

of two)medieval period15thCentury

Sort simple songdramatic storydialogue and action

more attention on the past-- less on character, setting, moral

Languagesimple, economy of words, dramatic contrasts,

epithets, set phrases, stock refrain

Bishop Percys Reliques of Ancient English Poetry ( 1765)


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Literary Ballad Conscious works of art ; poets mastery ( sound and sense; imagery, old world

atmosphere, simple diction , repetition, refrain, question-answer narration,invocation, etc.)

Poet tries to capture simplicity, freshness, charm, rapidity of movement, music andmelody of the original

Walter Scotts anthology of medieval ballads The Minstrelsy of the ScottishBorderwithsome original ballads of his own ( Eve of St.John, Lathe Lay of the LastMinstrel)

Scenic background, historical and psychological interest, supernatural element

STC: Christabel, Ancient Mariner

Keats: La Belle Dame Sans Merci

Tennyson: Lady of Shallot ( based on Arthurian legends)

Browning : Herve Riel; The Pied Piper of Hamelin

Rossetti: Sister Helen, Rose Mary

WB Yeats : The Ballad of Moll Magee ( eight line stanza) WH Auden : The Ballad of Miss Gee and Victor ( Comic + horrorlight deeds if

incredible cruelty)

Englishmen love Ballad ; Mock Balladparody of the ballad properCowpersJohn Gilpin


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Ballad essentials Short story in verseexploits of some popular hero/

incident of common knowledge; generally tragic Dramaticattention captured by abrupt , startling

opening

Extreme simplicityprimitive

Questionanswer method of narration Often Poet prays to Christ and Virgin Mary

Obsolete and archaic words

Extremely musical

Element of supernatural, magic and mystery Ballad-stanza

Refrain used


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The Epic

Long story in verse

Epics of growth/ Popular and Epics of Art

Epic Popular: Number of stories and legendsabout some popular hero

IliadHomer; Beowulf (Anglo Saxon);

Epic of Art: Artistic imitation of the manner andstyle

AeniedVirgil; Paradise Lost;


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Epic essentials

Long narrative poem generally divided into 12books ( Homers and Miltons )heroic poem

Military exploits, deeds of valor of a national/

international hero; man of heroic dimensions;giant among men; has extraordinary physicalprowess; Iliaddeeds of Greeks; Odysseydeeds of King Odysseus or Ulysses; ParadiseLostSatancosmic sweep--deals withevents of interest to all mankind


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Epic Essentials

Number of thrilling and sensational episodes

and digressionsmuch exaggeration to excite

wonder and admiration

Well-marked unity and forman organic

whole; all events and adventures centre

around the epic-hero; classic epic ( Homer or

Milton) and romantic epic ( Spensers FaerieQueen)


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Epic Essentials

Supernatural play an important partintervenes in the action

Reflects the life of the timespirit of the

Ageimportant social document Purpose is moralto arouse patriotism and

national pride ( Homer); to fashion a

gentleman in virtuous and gentle discipline (Spenser); justify the ways of God to man (Milton)


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Epic Essentials

Theme is lofty and sublime; diction is equallyelevated and grand / grandeur both in theme andtreatment; epic-similes, personification, Latinism,unusual and unfamiliar words, allusion and

referencesstylistic devices Unique narrationdoes not begin from

beginningplunges into middleearlier part indue courseinvocation to Muse followed by a

statement of the themejourney to theunderworld

Epic in England begins and ends with Milton


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Epic--Examples

Wordsworths Preludehow his mind was educatedand developed under the influence of natureinternaland spiritual conflictwar-like nature of epic

Keats Hyperion

Byrons Don Juan ( epic-satire on social , political,economic conditions of different countries of Europe)

Tennysons Idylls of the King

Mathew Arnolds Sohrab and Rustom ( overpoweringrole of fate in human affairs)

T S Eliots Waste Land


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The Mock-Epic

Small narrative poem-machinery and

conventions of epic proper employed in the

treatment of trivial themes

Mocking ridiculous effect is created

The battle of the frog and mice ( parody of

Iliad); Tale of the Tub, Battle of the Books;

Dunciad and Rape of the Lock


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Rape of the locks of Belinda by Lord Peter

Belinda-displeased; families fall out; trivial theme

Trivial is exaggerated, glorified

Tiny slip of a girl as the central personage Game of cards; fight of the lords and ladies for the severed

lock of hair

Weaponsbodkin and a pinch of snuff; killing eyes ofladies

Supernaturaltiny sylphs seated on bodkins andcandlestickswatch the fight

Exaggeration, Latinism, personification, circumlocutionused

Epic values are reversed Battle of the booksliterary controversy on comparative

merits and demerits of ancient and modern learningdelightfully fantastic, an inimitable parody of epic


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The Idyll Description in prose or verse of some scene or event

which is striking, picturesque and complete in itself

May stand alone or form an interlude

Greek word = a little picture ( brevity, pictorial effect-

essentials) Relatively close the ordinary world of action and

experience though idealized pictures of the worldmore often idealized, poetic pictures of rural folk in

rural settingsSheds a romantic poetic glow on what may otherwise be

commonplace, dull, prosaic and dreary


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Novels in verse

Shakespeares The Winters Tale

Chaucers Canterbury Talesform of humororoustranscript from contemporary manners especiallylow life

Goldsmiths Deserted Villagecharacter studies Wordsworths Michael( life of humble and poor)

BrowningsRed-Cotton Night-Cap Country; Dramaticidylls

Tennysons Idylls of the King Neither lyric nor narrative but partakes qualities of

both


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The Dramatic Monologue

Poets identity is merged with that of the

dramatic personagepoets mouthpiece

Monologueonly one character speaks

throughoutdramatic because they do not

express the thoughts and feelings of the poet

but of some imaginary character

Robert Browning


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Browning depictswide variety of characters taken from all walksof lifecowards, rogues, artists, scholars, dules, cheats, beggars,murderers and saintsnumber of countries and Ages

In each monologue one character is at centrewhat passes in his

soulspeaker is placed in the most momentous or critical situationof his lifehis reaction

Abrupt but arresting opening

My Last Duchess ( Opens with reference to the picture of the deadDuchess shown to someone)

Self introspection, moods, emotion, reflections and meditations ;thoughts over past and future focusing on the presentunity isemotional than logical

Provide us with a peep into inner working of the mind and soul ofthese characters

Minor charactersmostly listenersinterlocutors

Andrea Del Sarto: Andreaspeaker; Lucrezalistener; her loverand three rival artists also introduced indirectly


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Stanza - Forms

The Chaucerian Stanza / Rhyme Royal

The Ottava Rhyma

The Spensarian Stanza

The Terza Rhyma

The Quatrain

The heroic Couplet

The Octosyllabic Couplet

Satire


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Mythological Stories Titans and Olympians: War of the Gods

The Story of Prometheus

The Story of Danae and Zeus

The Birth of Venus and Cupid : Venus and Adonis

Venus and Mars

Orpheus and Eurydice

Echo and Narcissus Perseus and Medusa

Cupid and Psyche

Jason and Golden Fleece

Hercules and his adventures

Helen and the war of Troy

Ulysses and his adventures Story of Samson and Delila

The Holy Grail, The Questers and King Fisher

Tiresias and King oedipus

( James Frazer: The Golden Bough; Jessie Weston : From Ritual to Romance)

Engl Lit Forms (3)

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