The ballad is one of the oldest and most beloved forms of poetry. Historically, it was a narrative form, often set to music, telling stories of heroic deeds, tragedy, and, most notably, love. This versatile structure has evolved over centuries, from traditional folk songs to modern renditions, but its core themes of passion, longing, and emotional conflict remain constant. In this article, we explore twelve ballad poems that revolve around the theme of love, examining how the form amplifies emotional resonance, and how each example reflects a distinct facet of romantic experience.
1. “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” by Samuel Taylor Coleridge
“He holds him with his skinny hand,
‘There was a ship,’ quoth he.
‘Hold off! unhand me, grey-beard loon!’
Eftsoons his hand dropt he.”
Though not a typical love ballad, Coleridge’s “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” contains the central theme of love in the form of a curse and redemption. The ballad recounts the mariner’s sin of killing the albatross, a bird associated with good omen, and his ensuing punishment. At the heart of the poem lies the idea of love as a moral and spiritual force. The Mariner’s ultimate redemption through the love for all living creatures echoes the idea that love, in its purest form, is restorative.
The structure of the poem—short stanzas, repetitive language, and a rhythm suitable for recitation—enhances the balladic tradition of oral storytelling, making the emotional impact of the mariner’s tale all the more gripping. The theme of love’s transformative power is explored through his evolving relationship with the natural world, turning his sin into a journey toward spiritual redemption.
2. “La Belle Dame Sans Merci” by John Keats
“I met a lady in the meads,
Full beautiful—a fairy’s child,
Her hair was long, her foot was light,
And her eyes were wild.”
Keats’s ballad is a haunting exploration of the destructive side of love. The poem tells the story of a knight who meets a mysterious and enchanting woman, only to fall victim to her bewitching allure. “La Belle Dame Sans Merci” (The Beautiful Lady Without Mercy) is often interpreted as a cautionary tale about the dangers of idealized or unattainable love. The knight’s ill-fated encounter with the fairy-like woman emphasizes the vulnerability and isolation that can accompany passionate desire.
The meter and rhyme scheme of the ballad (alternating lines of tetrameter and trimeter) create a rhythmic and hypnotic effect, mirroring the knight’s trance-like obsession with the lady. The ambiguity of the lady’s true nature—whether she is a temptress, a fairy, or a symbol of unrequited love—heightens the mystery and allure, turning the poem into a meditation on love’s darker, more consuming aspects.
3. “The Highwayman” by Alfred Noyes
“The wind was a torrent of darkness among the gusty trees,
The moon was a ghostly galleon tossed upon cloudy seas,
The road was a ribbon of moonlight over the purple moor,
And the highwayman came riding—
Riding—riding—
The highwayman came riding, up to the old inn-door.”
One of the most famous ballads of the 20th century, Alfred Noyes’s “The Highwayman” is a tragic love story set against a backdrop of suspense and danger. The highwayman, a dashing and dangerous figure, returns to his lover, Bess, only to find her betrayed by the redcoats and caught in a deadly trap. In a final act of defiance, Bess shoots herself to warn him, ensuring the highwayman’s revenge, but at the cost of her life.
The rhythmic cadence of the ballad, with its consistent refrain and use of repetition, enhances the sense of urgency and impending tragedy. Noyes’s vivid imagery and the juxtaposition of love and violence create an emotional roller-coaster, capturing the intense and sometimes tragic nature of love. In this ballad, love is intertwined with sacrifice and loss, a recurring theme in many ballads about love.
4. “The Ballad of Reading Gaol” by Oscar Wilde
“Yet each man kills the thing he loves,
By each let this be heard,
Some do it with a bitter look,
Some with a flattering word,
The coward does it with a kiss,
The brave man with a sword!
Some kill their love when they are young,
And some when they are old;
Some kill their love by being cold,
Some by being bold.”
In this moving ballad, Oscar Wilde meditates on the paradoxes of love—how love can bring both joy and pain, and how the very thing we cherish can often lead to our downfall. Wilde’s famous line, “Yet each man kills the thing he loves,” speaks to the destructive nature of passion and the vulnerability that comes with deep attachment.
The ballad is rich with the themes of guilt and remorse, particularly in its setting: Wilde wrote it while imprisoned in Reading Gaol. The poet’s exploration of the complex and sometimes contradictory nature of love in this work is a brilliant demonstration of the ballad’s capacity to express inner turmoil.The refrain emphasizes the inevitability of hurt in love, while the rhythmic flow lends a solemn, almost chant-like quality to the piece.
5. “The Shepherdesse” by Sir Philip Sidney
“My love is thine, and thou art mine,
And mine is thine, and thine is mine.”
In this poem, Sir Philip Sidney presents a gentle, idealized form of love, as represented by the perfect union of the shepherd and his beloved. The repetitive, simple structure of the ballad and the directness of the language suggest the purity and clarity of love. It’s a union not of earthly possession, but of reciprocal devotion.
Sidney’s use of simplicity in language and structure echoes the pastoral tradition in which the ballad has its roots. The steady rhythm mirrors the steady nature of true, idealized love. Though the love in this ballad is not fraught with the same tumultuous emotions as in others, it presents an enduring vision of love as something harmonious, fulfilling, and eternal.
6. “Edward” by Anonymous (Traditional Ballad)
“Why does your brand so drip with blood,
Edward, Edward?
Why does your brand so drip with blood,
And why so sad as thee?”
“Edward” is a traditional ballad that explores themes of guilt, betrayal, and the consequences of a fatal, misguided love. The ballad tells of a son who kills his father, driven by a twisted sense of loyalty to his lover. Upon realizing the enormity of his crime, Edward is overwhelmed with regret, but it is too late for redemption.
The poem’s repetitive structure and refrain contribute to the growing tension and horror of the narrative. The rhythm serves to heighten the emotional urgency of Edward’s guilt, culminating in a tragic recognition of how love can lead to moral destruction. Through the sparse dialogue and straightforward language, the ballad conveys a sense of inevitability and doom, typical of many folk ballads.
7. “The Unquiet Grave” (Traditional English Ballad)
“The wind doth blow today, my love,
And a few small drops of rain.
I only had but one true-love,
And in the greenwood he lies slain.”
A classic English ballad, “The Unquiet Grave” delves into the theme of love and loss, and the pain of separation. The narrator, grieving the death of their lover, is visited by the ghost of the deceased, who tells them to cease their mourning. The ballad explores the tension between the living and the dead, love’s persistence beyond death, and the healing power of letting go.
The simplicity of the language and the alternating dialogue between the living lover and the ghost evoke a deep sense of sorrow, and the repetitive refrain underscores the cyclical nature of grief. The ballad’s use of nature imagery—wind, rain, and greenwood—enhances the atmosphere of mourning, linking the emotional pain to the natural world.
8. “Bonny Barbara Allan” (Traditional Scottish Ballad)
“Young Jemmy he’s a-lying sick,
Bonny Barbara Allan.
The doctors say he will not live,
And that’s a’ the matter.”
“Bonny Barbara Allan” is a tragic ballad that portrays unrequited love, as Barbara Allan spurns the love of Jemmy, who lies on his deathbed. She later regrets her coldness after his death, realizing that her rejection led to his demise. The poem explores the fleeting nature of love and the irreversible consequences of emotional decisions.
The structure of the ballad, with its repetitive refrain and call-and-response dialogue, reflects the inevitability of the emotional cycle. It is a song of both love and regret, and the rhythmic simplicity mirrors the young lovers’ fates, forever sealed by their actions.
9. “The Ballad of Sir Patrick Spens” (Traditional Scottish Ballad)
“The king sits in Dumferling town,
Drinking the blude-red wine:
‘O where will I get a skeely skipper,
To sail this ship of mine?'”
While primarily focused on themes of duty and tragedy, “The Ballad of Sir Patrick Spens” can also be read as an exploration of loyalty and sacrifice in love. Sir Patrick Spens is a loyal servant to the king, and his tragic death at sea—resulting from a royal command—reflects the tension between personal love (for family and life) and public duty.
The poem’s lilting rhythm and dramatic structure emphasize the fatefulness of the narrative. The emotional distance in the storytelling contrasts with the deep personal sacrifices made for love and duty, presenting a theme that love can be as much about sacrifice as it is about desire.
10. “Annabel Lee” by Edgar Allan Poe
“But we loved with a love that was more than love—
I and my Annabel Lee—
With a love that the wingèd seraphs of Heaven
Coveted her and me.”
In “Annabel Lee,” Poe explores the theme of eternal love, one that transcends life and death. The speaker recounts a love so powerful that even angels envy it, and despite the death of Annabel Lee, their bond persists. The poem’s melodic structure and repetitive refrain echo the speaker’s obsessive devotion, reinforcing the idea that true love endures even after physical separation.
The imagery of the sea and the ethereal quality of Annabel Lee enhance the notion of love as something vast and untouchable, a force beyond the mortal realm. Poe’s melancholic tone underscores the tension between the earthly and the eternal, where love defies death and time.
11. “The Lady of Shalott” by Alfred Lord Tennyson
“On either side the river lie
Long fields of barley and of rye,
That clothe the wold and meet the sky;
And through the fields the road runs by
To many-towered Camelot;
And up and down the people go,
Gazing at the river’s flow,
And flinging the shadows of the flowers in the grass,
And the tears of the heart in the heart’s sorrow.”
In Tennyson’s “The Lady of Shalott,” the ballad form serves to tell the tragic tale of the Lady, who is cursed to live in isolation, unable to look directly at the outside world. Her only connection to reality is through a mirror, and when she sees the love of Sir Lancelot from her window, she defies the curse. Her choice leads to her death, symbolizing the consequences of unrequited or unattainable love.
Tennyson’s use of vivid imagery and rhythmic patterns enhances the theme of tragic love. The slow, almost mournful pace of the ballad reflects the Lady’s quiet desperation, while the refrain reiterates her separation from the world of love and life. Her death, linked with the theme of unattainable love, underscores the impossibility of ever fully embracing desire when bound by fate.
12. “The Lover’s Ghost” by John Keats
“O’er the hill the maiden goes,
One so pale and sad,
And beside her, in the shade,
The lover’s ghost is mad.”
Keats’s “The Lover’s Ghost” is a haunting ballad that illustrates the separation between life and death. The ghost of the lover returns, lamenting the death of his beloved, and their unfulfilled love becomes the driving force behind the poem. The poem’s rhythmic flow mirrors the movement of the ghost, moving in and out of the realms of the living and the dead.
Keats explores the timeless nature of love, even when it transcends death. The ballad structure—repetitive, with a haunting refrain—mirrors the emotional cycle of loss, grief, and longing that defines many of his works about love.
Conclusion
Ballad poetry, with its rhythmic flow and repetitive structure, has long been a vehicle for exploring themes of love, from its most romantic and idealized forms to its tragic and destructive consequences. Through the twelve ballads discussed, we see a wide range of expressions of love: passionate, tragic, unrequited, idealized, and eternal. Each poem, while using the same structural framework, reflects the individual poet’s vision of love, showing how the ballad form can adapt to convey complex emotional landscapes. Whether in the form of a knight’s doomed romance, a ghost’s lingering affection, or a tragic sacrifice, love in ballad poetry endures as a timeless and compelling theme.
