Department of English
Faculty of Arts, Chulalongkorn University
Lord
Randall
(c. 15th century)
Notes
1 hae: have
4 fain: gladly, eagerly
4 wald: would
5 gat: get, got
11 broo: broth, soup
| Child, English and Scottish Ballads, vol. 2, 248–50) | Modernized English | |
| “O where hae ye been, Lord Randal, my son? O where hae ye been, my handsome young man?”— “I hae been to the wild wood; mother make my bed soon, For I’m weary wi’ hunting, and fain wald lie down.”— “Where gat ye your dinner, Lord Randal, my son? Where gat ye your dinner, my handsome young man?” “I dined wi’ my true-love; mother, make my bed soon, For I’m weary wi’ hunting, and fain wald lie down.”— “What gat ye to your dinner, Lord Randal, my son? What gat ye to your dinner, my handsome young man?”— “I gat eels bóil’d in broo; mother, make my bed soon, For I’m weary wi’ hunting, and fain wald lie down.”— “What became of your bloodhounds, Lord Randal, my son? What became of your bloodhounds, my handsome young man?”— “O they swell’d and they died; mother, make my bed soon, For I’m weary wi’ hunting, and fain wald lie down.”— “O I fear ye are poison’d, Lord Randal, my son! O I fear ye are poisoned, my handsome young man!”— “O yes, I am poison’d; mother, make my bed soon, For I’m sick at the heart, and I fain wald lie down.” |
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 |
“Oh where have you been, Lord Randall, my
son? Oh where have you been, my handsome young man?”— “I have been to the wild wood; mother make my bed soon, For I’m weary with hunting, and gladly would lie down.”— “Where got you your dinner, Lord Randall, my son? Where got you your dinner, my handsome young man?” “I dined with my true-love; mother, make my bed soon, For I’m weary with hunting, and gladly would lie down.”— “What had you for your dinner, Lord Randall, my son? What had you for your dinner, my handsome young man?”— “I gat eels boiled in soup; mother, make my bed soon, For I’m weary with hunting, and gladly would lie down.”— “What became of your bloodhounds, Lord Randall, my son? What became of your bloodhounds, my handsome young man?”— “O they swelled and they died; mother, make my bed soon, For I’m weary with hunting, and gladly would lie down.”— “O I fear you are poisoned, Lord Randall, my son! O I fear you are poisoned, my handsome young man!”— “O yes, I am poisoned; mother, make my bed soon, For I’m sick at the heart, and I gladly would lie down.” |
Introduction
Goethe, who saw so many things with such clearness of vision, brought out the charm of the popular ballad for readers of a later day in his remark that the value of these songs of the people is to be found in the fact that their motives are drawn directly from nature; and he hadded, that in the art of saying things compactly, uneducated men have greater skill than those who are educated. [...] No other form of verse has, therefore, in so great a degree, the charm of freshness. In material, treatment, and spirit, these ballads are set in sharp contrast with the poetry of [end of page 7] the hour. They deal with historical events or incidents, with local traditions, with personal adventure or achievement. They are, almost without exception, entirely objective.
—Hamilton W. Mabie, "Introduction," A Book of Old English Ballads (New York: Macmillan, 1896): 7–28.
Sample Student Responses to "Lord Randall"
Response 1:
|
|
Vocabulary
folk, popular, traditional ballad
Reference
| Media |
|
|
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
| Links |
|
Home | Introduction to the Study of English Fiction | Literary Terms | English Resources
Last
updated
October 4, 2015