my judgement of aballad is being questioned.
ok lets analyse the plots
thomas the rhymer.thomas is lying asleep,he,is abducted by the queen of the elves,told not to kiss her lips,or he will never return from the elfin kingdom shown three different roads the road to hell, the road to heaven, and the road to the elfin kingdom.he is warned never to tell what he is seen,or ever speak in the Elfyn land.
15.oh they rodeon and farther on.
and they waded thru rivers aboon the knee.
and they sawneither sun nor moon
.but they heard the roaring of the sea.
16.it was mirk mirk night,and there was nae stern light
and theywaded thru red blod up to the knee.for all the blood that shedon earth
runs thru the springs of that countrie.
17.soon they came to a garden green
ans she plucked an apple from atree
take this for thywages true thomas.it willgive the the tongue that can never lie.
18.my tongue is mine own
a goodly gift ye wood gie to me.
Ineitherdought to buy or sell
at fair or tryst where imay be.
19 now hold thy peace the lady said.for asI SAY SO IT MUST BE.
20.he has gotten a coat of the elven cloth
and a pair of shoes of velvet green
and till 7 years were gane and past
true thomas on earth was never seen.
this is an interestsing story,ans some wonderful poetry,compared to Randall bleating on about his poisining,that in some versions is done by his sister.and in some by his stepmother.And some by an anonymous well wisher.
neither does RandallS PLOT compare in complexity or subtelty to Tamm Linn,Willie of Winesbury,Lord Bateman.Barbara Allen,OR jean ritchies version of the lass of loch royan.
as far as I am concerned the plot of Randall is no more interest than watching a blank television screens.,or reading Pincher Martin