TITLE: Singing the News of Death
AUTHOR: Una McIlvenna
PUBLISHER: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 9780197551851
PODCAST EPISODE: Episode 132
REVIEWER: Hilary Wilson
Everybody knows at least one execution ballad or transportation song. Recently, Bob Dylan and Nick Cave popularized some of them to a more modern audience, creating a resurgence in interest among newer generations. Una McIllvenna, in her 2022 book Singing the News of Death: Execution Ballads in Europe 1500-1900 published by Oxford University Press, has compiled perhaps the most comprehensive look at the genre as a whole.
McIllvenna directly addresses the limitations of previous studies of execution ballads from the outset. Researchers have paid much attention to songs in the English language, but comparatively little has been written on their foreign language counterparts: particularly Dutch and German ballads. While McIllvenna explains that some of this limitation is due to a dearth of material - English ballads have been comparatively well-preserved, while Italian ballads suffered serious losses due to wars in the region - she still does her best to create a comprehensive comparative study of ballads throughout Europe.
The first section of the book focuses upon identifying the key features of execution ballads and how those at times differed throughout Europe. There is a brilliant focus upon the nature of contrafactum, the way that new songs would utilize older melodies to add layers of nuanced context to the new ballad. McIllevanna provides the music for some of the popular melodies mentioned throughout the book. And to further amplify the reading experience, she has also established a website (www.executionballads.com) where the various songs can be referenced, collected, and listened to by members of the public. She then clarifies how the definition of shame has changed over time and how powerful a force it was within executions. The final chapter of this section expounds upon the nature of the ballads themselves. How truthful were the songs that were sung, and did the fantastical elements of the songs amplify the messages they spread, or deter the effects of them?
The second section of the book focuses on the topics of the ballads themselves, mainly crimes. Contrafactum, the subtle use of language within songs, and what crimes the ballad writers focused on, all create a comprehensive view of how the public perceived justice, gender, and morality throughout time. McIlvenna uncovers some surprising facts throughout the course of this study about how political executions were perceived by the public, as well as how infanticide and other crimes were viewed more compassionately than one might have expected by the general public… and how spousal murder wasn’t!
McIllvenna’s book also presents a compelling conclusion as to why execution ballads stopped being written. While interest in them remained high throughout the advent of newspapers being printed and becoming more affordable, the final nail in the coffin was simply the disappearance of public executions. People’s appetite for the macabre remains, but no longer being able to witness the execution destroyed the practice of singing about death in that way. The way in which death and execution has been perceived by the public is more stable than perhaps many think. McIllvenna’s book provides an in-depth perspective that will help readers realize that compassion is a stronger force than many realize.
AUTHOR: Una McIlvenna
PUBLISHER: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 9780197551851
PODCAST EPISODE: Episode 132
REVIEWER: Hilary Wilson
Everybody knows at least one execution ballad or transportation song. Recently, Bob Dylan and Nick Cave popularized some of them to a more modern audience, creating a resurgence in interest among newer generations. Una McIllvenna, in her 2022 book Singing the News of Death: Execution Ballads in Europe 1500-1900 published by Oxford University Press, has compiled perhaps the most comprehensive look at the genre as a whole.
McIllvenna directly addresses the limitations of previous studies of execution ballads from the outset. Researchers have paid much attention to songs in the English language, but comparatively little has been written on their foreign language counterparts: particularly Dutch and German ballads. While McIllvenna explains that some of this limitation is due to a dearth of material - English ballads have been comparatively well-preserved, while Italian ballads suffered serious losses due to wars in the region - she still does her best to create a comprehensive comparative study of ballads throughout Europe.
The first section of the book focuses upon identifying the key features of execution ballads and how those at times differed throughout Europe. There is a brilliant focus upon the nature of contrafactum, the way that new songs would utilize older melodies to add layers of nuanced context to the new ballad. McIllevanna provides the music for some of the popular melodies mentioned throughout the book. And to further amplify the reading experience, she has also established a website (www.executionballads.com) where the various songs can be referenced, collected, and listened to by members of the public. She then clarifies how the definition of shame has changed over time and how powerful a force it was within executions. The final chapter of this section expounds upon the nature of the ballads themselves. How truthful were the songs that were sung, and did the fantastical elements of the songs amplify the messages they spread, or deter the effects of them?
The second section of the book focuses on the topics of the ballads themselves, mainly crimes. Contrafactum, the subtle use of language within songs, and what crimes the ballad writers focused on, all create a comprehensive view of how the public perceived justice, gender, and morality throughout time. McIlvenna uncovers some surprising facts throughout the course of this study about how political executions were perceived by the public, as well as how infanticide and other crimes were viewed more compassionately than one might have expected by the general public… and how spousal murder wasn’t!
McIllvenna’s book also presents a compelling conclusion as to why execution ballads stopped being written. While interest in them remained high throughout the advent of newspapers being printed and becoming more affordable, the final nail in the coffin was simply the disappearance of public executions. People’s appetite for the macabre remains, but no longer being able to witness the execution destroyed the practice of singing about death in that way. The way in which death and execution has been perceived by the public is more stable than perhaps many think. McIllvenna’s book provides an in-depth perspective that will help readers realize that compassion is a stronger force than many realize.