Ballad
Rajiv AnandThe ballad’s lyrical rhythm and rhyme nod to the fact that this poetic form is rooted in song.
The traditional ballad was performed at dances in time with the music, and the term ultimately derives from the Latin word ballāre meaning “to dance.” This form of narrative poem is structured with an unspecified number of rhymed quatrains (four-line stanzas).
“The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” by Samuel Taylor Coleridge and “Annabel Lee” by Edgar Allan Poe are particularly famous examples of ballads.