Lord Randal - Poetry Analysis
"Lord Randal" is a somber
literary ballad of murder and betrayal. The poem succeeds in creating a mood
and intriguing readers through rhythm and arrangement of facts, rather than,
the customary imagery. The anonymous author recounts this dramatic irony in the
form of five questions and five answers each of which is followed by a refrain
and are the outline for all quatrains. My wonder at the emotional impact
yielded through such a casual structure, is the inducement behind this
particular selection.
The first stanza describes a seemingly innocent action; Lord Randal returns
home, conceivably wearied, after a long day of hunting. The rhyme scheme in
this leading quatrain of a b c d sets the fabric to be followed throughout the
entirety, as well as, the end-stopped lines and the cacophony employed to slow
down the reading in the last sentence of each stanza. Although, some may argue
that ‘wild' (line 3) and ‘weary' (line 4) foretell what is to come through
their ambiguous connotations: wild implying beastly as well as mad, and weary
denoting both physically and mentally weary; I believe the mood to be initially
suggested in the second verse, making the first unique solely in attitude.
Lord Randal's mother questioning where her son has dined is the opening to the coming strophe. The suspicion originates in Lord Randal's response where he discloses having dined with his "true love" and emphasizes his, now excessive, fatigue. This redundancy evokes suspicion in the reader and his mother. The simple refrain becomes an effectual dramatic device as its denotation increases with every application. Nowhere is this more prominent than in the third verse. In it, Lord Randal is asked ‘what' he has dined, instead of ‘where', and once again we undergo the efficacy of the refrain. The mother's repetitious interrogatory correspondingly displays her growing mistrust; consequently, the reader's likewise.
The fourth section depicts some usage of imagery. Lord Randal's mother is at...
Lord Randal's mother questioning where her son has dined is the opening to the coming strophe. The suspicion originates in Lord Randal's response where he discloses having dined with his "true love" and emphasizes his, now excessive, fatigue. This redundancy evokes suspicion in the reader and his mother. The simple refrain becomes an effectual dramatic device as its denotation increases with every application. Nowhere is this more prominent than in the third verse. In it, Lord Randal is asked ‘what' he has dined, instead of ‘where', and once again we undergo the efficacy of the refrain. The mother's repetitious interrogatory correspondingly displays her growing mistrust; consequently, the reader's likewise.
The fourth section depicts some usage of imagery. Lord Randal's mother is at...
Lord
Randal†is a somber
literary ballad of murder and betrayal. The poem succeeds in creating a mood
and intriguing readers through rhythm and arrangement of facts, rather than,
the customary imagery. The anonymous author recounts this dramatic irony in the form of five questions and five
answers each of which is followed by a refrain and are the outline for all
quatrains. My wonder at the emotional impact yielded through such a casual
structure, is the inducement behind this particular selection.
The first stanza describes a seemingly
innocent action; Lord Randal returns home, conceivably wearied, after a long
day of hunting. The rhyme scheme in this leading quatrain of a b c d sets the
fabric to be followed throughout the entirety, as well as, the end-stopped
lines and the cacophony employed to slow down the reading in the last sentence
of each stanza. Although, some may argue that ‘wild’ (line 3) and
‘weary’ (line 4) foretell what is to come through their ambiguous
connotations: wild implying beastly as well as mad, and weary denoting both
physically and mentally weary; I believe the mood to be initially suggested in
the second verse, making the first unique solely in attitude.
Lord Randal’s mother questioning
where her son has dined is the opening to the coming strophe. The suspicion
originates in Lord Randal’s response where he discloses having dined with his
“true love†and emphasizes his, now excessive, fatigue. This redundancy evokes
suspicion in the reader and his mother. The simple refrain becomes an effectual dramatic device as its denotation
increases with every application. Nowhere is this more prominent than in the
third verse. In it, Lord Randal is asked ‘what’ he has dined, instead of
‘where’, and once again we undergo the efficacy of the refrain. The mother’s repetitious interrogatory
correspondingly displays her growing mistrust; consequently, the reader’s
likewise.
The fourth section depicts some usage
of imagery. Lord Randal’s mother is at the peak of her concerns when noticing
that her son has returned lacking his hounds. The terminology ‘bloodhound’
is embraced in the mother’s mention. The imagery associated to the ‘blood’
in bloodhounds and the symbolism in their deaths must not be overlooked. Due to
this unsubtle imagery the son’s refrain, which previously only hinted to
death, now evolves into a metaphor.
The fifth and final verse is the
emotional climax in this poem. The mother’s fear is now a reality, her
question now a statement, Lord Randal’s response now a cry. The phrase
“I’m sick at the heart†can be seen as both a synecdoche for his affliction and a metaphor for
his feelings toward the deep betrayal. Indeed, the use of the term “true
love†in line seven has ironic
implications, in view of the way his “true love†has treated him. Furthermore, the mother’s
quick suspicions hint to her distrust of the girlfriend and Lord Randal’s
reluctance to admit the truth, may insinuate some feelings of shame. In conclusion, through the omission of facts
and treatment of repetition, the reader senses a large range of emotions and a
well-rounded assumption of the relationship between three characters.
"Lord Randal" is a somber literary
ballad of murder and betrayal. The poem succeeds in creating a mood and
intriguing readers through rhythm and arrangement of facts, rather than, the
customary imagery. The anonymous author recounts this dramatic irony in the
form of five questions and five answers each of which is followed by a refrain
and are the outline for all quatrains. My wonder at the emotional impact
yielded through such a casual structure, is the inducement behind this particular
selection.
The first stanza describes a seemingly innocent
action; Lord Randal returns home, conceivably wearied, after a long day of
hunting. The rhyme scheme in this leading quatrain of a b c d sets the fabric
to be followed throughout the entirety, as well as, the end-stopped lines and
the cacophony employed to slow down the reading in the last sentence of each
stanza. Although, some may argue that ‘wild' (line 3) and ‘weary' (line 4) foretell what is to come through
their ambiguous connotations: wild implying beastly as well as mad, and weary
denoting both physically and mentally weary; I believe the mood to be initially suggested in
the second verse, making the first unique solely in attitude.
Lord Randal's mother questioning where her son
has dined is the opening to the coming strophe. The suspicion originates in
Lord Randal's response where he discloses having dined with his "true
love" and emphasizes his, now excessive, fatigue. This redundancy evokes
suspicion in the reader and his mother. The simple refrain becomes an effectual
dramatic device as its denotation increases with every application. Nowhere is
this more prominent than in the third verse. In it, Lord Randal is asked ‘what' he has dined,
instead of ‘where', and once again we undergo the efficacy of the refrain. The mother's repetitious interrogatory
correspondingly displays her
growing mistrust; consequently, the reader's likewise.
The fourth section depicts some usage of
imagery. Lord Randal's mother is at the peak of her concerns when noticing that
her son has returned lacking his hounds. The terminology ‘bloodhound' is embraced in the mother's mention. The imagery
associated to the ‘blood' in bloodhounds and the symbolism in their deaths must not be
overlooked. Due to this unsubtle imagery the son's refrain, which previously
only hinted to death, now evolves into a metaphor.
The fifth and final verse is the emotional
climax in this poem. The mother's fear is now a reality, her question now a
statement, Lord Randal's response now a cry. The phrase "I'm sick at the
heart" can be seen as both a synecdoche for his affliction and a metaphor
for his feelings toward the deep betrayal. Indeed, the use of the term
"true love" in line seven has ironic implications, in view of the way
his "true love" has treated him. Furthermore, the mother's quick
suspicions hint to her distrust of the girlfriend and Lord Randal's reluctance
to admit the truth, may insinuate some feelings of shame. In conclusion,
through the omission of facts and treatment of repetition, the reader senses a
large range of emotions and a well-rounded assumption of the relationship
between three characters.
Summary
Summary: "Lord Randal" tells
the story of a young man who has been poisoned by his sweetheart. When he
comes home one evening, his mother asks him where he has been. He tells
her he has been hunting in the wood and wants to lie down. His mother
continues to question him, and he reveals that he had a dinner of boiled eels
with his sweetheart. He says that his bloodhounds, who probably ate the
scraps, swelled and died, prompting his mother to guess that he has been
poisoned. The poem ends with Lord Randal sick at heart and in body.
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