As a literary genre, according to scholars, the lyric poem is arguably the oldest one. Don't we see our mothers uttering lullabies to put their babies to sleep? Don't we see ourselves chanting rhythmic words to draw enthusiasm in our work? Similarly, we can guess that ancient mothers might have used lullabies to put their babies to sleep and people might have chanted rhythmic songs which gave them enthusiasm in their work. Therefore, we can easily guess that human beings used rhythmic songs long before the formation of the oral epic.
Lyrical poetry means musical poetry. In fact, according to Cuddon's DICTIONARY OF LITERARY TERMS AND LITERARY THEORY, "The Greek defined lyric as a song to be sung to the accompaniment of a lyre (lyra)." The lyre is a musical instrument and the name of the lyric poem originated from this instrument. This instrument was used when the ancient people used to recite or chant poetry. Scholars say that lyric poems initially were songs. We the modern people still call the words of songs the lyrics. However, the musical part was ignored in some kinds of lyric poems though, later, choral ode and ballad retained musical aspects.
Poets choose lyric poems to express their personal feelings and thoughts. Unlike narrative poems such as ballad or epic poems, a lyrical poem is very short in length. According to Cuddon's dictionary, a lyric is "not often longer than fifty or sixty lines, and often only between a dozen and thirty lines". A lyrical poem is also different from narrative poems in the sense that a narrative poem, which has a beginning, middle, and end, tells a story. However, a lyric poem does not tell any story; it just expresses a single speaker's personal feelings musically. Love and nature are the two common subject matters of lyric poetry. Medieval people considered winter uncomfortable moments of life. It was a dark, cold, and miserable moment in life. On the other hand, bringing light, spring brought the warmth and pleasure of life. Therefore, medieval poets used to celebrate the arrival of spring. On the other hand, the lyric poets have been celebrating love, be it a mother's love for her son/daughter or people's love for mankind or God, from time immemorial.
A lyric poem can be in the form of elegy, ode, hymn, epitaph, sonnet, and a love song. An elegy is a mourning song sung over the death of a near and dear one. Thomas Grey's "Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard" is an example of an elegy. The poem was written to mourn the death of the poet Richard West in 1742. Another example is "O Captain! My Captain! by Walt Whitman. This poem reflects the death of President Abraham Lincoln who was assassinated. However, An elegy not only deals with the theme of mourning, lamentation, and sorrow but also solace and redemption. Ode is also a type of lyric poem written to express a poet's feelings and thoughts about a specific person or subject. John Keats' "Ode to Autumn", "Ode to Gracian Urn" and "Ode to Nightingale" are some of the examples. Another type of lyric poetry is a hymn that sings a religious song, especially sung during Christian worship. "Abide with Me", "Dear Lord And Father of Mankind", "I the Lord Of Sea And Sky" are a few examples of hymns. Epitaph is also a lyric poem that serves as an elegy and is written as an inscription on a tombstone. A couple of examples are "Epitaph to a Dog" by Lord Byron, "Upon a Child That Died" by Robert Herrick. By the way, there will be a separate discussion of each type of lyric poem. A sonnet is a poem of fourteen-line poems. Based on rhyme scheme and the arrangement of lines, the sonnet has many types such as Petrarchan, Shakespearean and Spenserian sonnet.
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Non-Narrative Kinds of Writings |
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