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How effective is Betjeman's use of the Ballad form in 'Sir John Piers' A ballad is a form of verse to be sung or recited and characterised by its presentation of a dramatic or exciting episode in simple narrative form. Though the ballad is a form still much written, the so-called "popular ballad" in most literature's belongs to the early periods before written literature was highly developed. They still appear, however, in isolated sections and among illiterate and semi-literate peoples. The folk ballad is traditionally an anonymous poem that has been passed on through oral tradition (spoken aloud or sung) from generation to generation. A literary ballad is one that is not anonymous, but is written down by a poet as he composes it and is not necessarily meant to be sung. Most ballads tend to follow these elements: the beginning is often abrupt, the language is usually simple; action is largely developed through dialogue, tragic situations are presented with the utmost simplicity, incremental repetition is common as in the Art ballad nevertheless appears in brief flashes, a single episode of high dramatic nature is presented, and often the ballad is brought to a close with some sort of summary stanza. The stanzaic form