The main figures of speech used in Albanian and Anglo-Saxon epic songs and ballads

• Date: 01 January 2018

European Journal of Economics, Law and Social Sciences

IIPCCL Publishing, Graz-Austria

Vol. 2 No. 1

January, 2018

ISSN 2519-1284

Acces online at www.iipccl.org

233

ThemainguresofspeechusedinAlbanianandAngloSaxonepicsongsand

ballads

PhD (C.) Danela Bala- Kraja

University of Shkodra

Abstract

When we speak about ballads we haveto take into consideration the fact that they were

wrienalong timeago andweremainlycomposed bysimplepeople toreportevents from

their lifespan and in some instances their intention was to commemorate their dierent

important events as they were witnessing them. Ballads and epic songs were full of emotions

astheytransmied informationandfeelingsnot onlyaboutpeopleslivesinversesbutthey

also introduced important historical events such as bales or duels to protect their own

boundaries, personal and family honour but they were also dedicated to their mothers,

fathers, siblings, sons, daughters, boyfriends or girlfriends and to simple aspects of life. The

mentaldevelopmentwasdierentfromtheonewehavetodayand consequentlythatreality

wasreectedeveninthe styleorguresofspeech ofballadsorepicsongs thathavearrived

tillnowadaysintheformtheywereoriginallywriennotbeingelaborated

Keywords: Figure, Albanian, Anglo-Saxon, songs.

Introduction

Ballads and epic songs are usually composed in a simple style at the beginning which

goes on with a rising one as they lay out the nature of characters’ descriptions. Some

ofthe main guresof speech displayedin themare epithet metaphoranaphora

hyperbolealliterationsimileironypersonicationandsoon

As above mentioned their style is simple and that simplicity is demonstrated in their

plotelaboration which inmany cases isdirectly mentioned inthe title orthe rst

beginning verses. This can be seen in the Albanian epic song ‘Halili mas deket’‘Halil

aerdeathortheAngloSaxonballadThe unquietgrave Bardswhencomposed

them took the gures of speech by their concrete natural  environment dierent

natural phenomena, mountains, forests, rivers, weather, sun and moon observations

thathelpedtocreatebeerdelineationmorevividdescriptions ofideasstoriesand

to be nearer to the listener or reader.

Oneof themostcommon andfrequently usedgure ofspeech isepithetwhich is

found in several Anglo- Saxon ballads. They are short, easy to understand but very

usableandtheyare oenfoundreadyintheform ofclichésandaremainlyusedin

ballads such ‘the green grass’, ‘the salt sea’ ‘the shadowy hills’ horses are described

as ‘milk- white’, ‘berry- brown’ lips as ‘rosy’ or ‘rugby- red’, corpses and tombs are

claycoldbeds likethatof BarbaraAllenso andnarrowMoreoverthey fulll

the sentence meaning and one of the above mentioned epithets is illustrated in the

ballad in the verses from ‘Lord Lovel’:

He order’d the grave to be open’d awide,

And the shroud to be turn’d around;