Though part of the larger prose cycles, which dominated all things Arthurian after the early 13th century, the originality of the "Tristan en prose" is found in the author's use of lyrical poems to express characters' hopes, despair or anger. Various books and articles have studied the lyrical content of the Prose "Tristan" whether expressed as riddles in verse, letters in verse, songs of mockery or love songs. In this way, the Prose "Tristan" functions like a musical. Characters placed in extreme situations actually "break into song." All of this is appropriate considering Tristan's traditional link to poetry.