In this interdisciplinary seminar, we will discuss historical song lyrics written in English throughout the British Isles – from the Middle Ages, the early days of printing and the emergence of broadside ballads up until the 19th century, when F. J. Child published his famous anthology The English and Scottish popular ballads (1882-1898) and many of the traditional folk songs still popular today were being written.
We will critically engage with definitions of the ballad genre, particularly with Child’s criteria of selection and his perceptions of “ancient” (as opposed to “artificial”) songs. We will also examine contemporary discourses regarding the emotional effects ascribed to popular songs and their role in the construction of group identities, by taking the example of broadside ballads in 19th-century Ireland.
Although the focus will be on discussing ballads and song lyrics from literary and cultural studies’ perspectives, this seminar is open to a wide range of interdisciplinary, i.e. musicological, historical, (socio-)linguistic and folkloric/ethnological approaches!
We will critically engage with definitions of the ballad genre, particularly with Child’s criteria of selection and his perceptions of “ancient” (as opposed to “artificial”) songs. We will also examine contemporary discourses regarding the emotional effects ascribed to popular songs and their role in the construction of group identities, by taking the example of broadside ballads in 19th-century Ireland.
Although the focus will be on discussing ballads and song lyrics from literary and cultural studies’ perspectives, this seminar is open to a wide range of interdisciplinary, i.e. musicological, historical, (socio-)linguistic and folkloric/ethnological approaches!