Hi all,

Going back to the "Bird In A Cage" issue above, am very interested in this as have been wondering about social context of Blackwaterside and all those songs of a girl getting led on and left pregnant - and wondering how much they were:

a) Ribald songs laughing at her misfortune
b) Punitive moralising warning girls of the dangers of relations with young men
c) Heartfelt expressions of anguish at unreturned love and betrayal

I appreciate the answer will have become "all of the above" from how they've been sung since "composition", but very curious about to what extent they were each possibility - and the "Bird In A Cage" reference feels like it's relevant to this! Would be grateful for any thoughts!

Jon