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Rime of the ancient mariner analysis essay
Samuel Taylor Coleridge essays
Critical analysis of the rime of the ancient mariner
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[1]Samuel Taylor Coleridge author of the lyrical ballad Rime of the ancient Mariner, tells a story of three men; wedding guest who are on their way to a wedding, but is stopped by an old sailor; with his hypnotic eyes caught the attention of the guest and tells a story of his disastrous voyage. [2]Coleridge combines striking images with elements of allusions to create assorted tones throughout the poem.
[3] Coleridge exercises biblical allusions to depict an array of unfortunate events the Mariner bought upon himself and the wedding guest.[4] The Mariner saw the Albatross “ As it had been a Christian soul We hailed it in God’s name” (65-66). [5]The Albatross symbolizes the dove in Noah’s ark that lead the boat to safety thus the Mariner
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner by Samuel Taylor Coleridge Part 1 a old man stops one man out of three that were walking down the street to go to a wedding the man is a relation of the married the man tries to get away but the old man grabs the man with his skinny hand the man is held there by the glitter of the old man's eye the man is listening intently "Like a three years' child" the old man has the man's attention the wedding guest sat down on a stone the mariner went on with his story the boat was anchored by a kirk KIRK- church EFTSOONS - unhand me ship was sailing south because sun came up on the left side of the boat they sailed closer to the equator every day because the sun came overhead MINSTRIL - musicians the bride has started to walk down the isle and the music is playing the old man carries on there was a storm at the equator the storm drove them to the south pole the storm was very strong they went through mist and then it started to snow it became very cold they went by very large chunks of ice floating through the water (icebergs) there was nothing but ice and snow and there was no animals, just ice an albatross flew over after a few days the men were happy to see it because they needed hope the men fed it the ice broke in front of the boat and then they sailed through the ice to safety a good south wind helped them sail north the bird followed them KEN - know something NE'ER - never VESPERS -days the bird stayed with them for nine days the ancient mariner shot the albatross with his cross bow HOLLOW - called albatross PART II burst of sea - ship wake there was no more bird following the boat (the felt alone again) they ran out of food the people on the boat cursed at the mariner for killing their omen of good luck the wind had stopped Gods own head - sun averred - swear, agree to they thought that the bird had brought the fog because the fog had cleared after the bird died the breeze stopped and the boat stopped the sky was clear and it was very hot they were at the equator because the sun at noon was above the mast they stayed there for a few days without wind it was like they were a painting "Water, water, everywhere," they could not see anything
The “Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner” is the story of a gruff, grumpy, and old sailor. In the story he tells people of a wedding. When he suddenly killed an Albatross on a voyage for no reason at all. The Albatross that was shot was innocent. The Mariner ended up returning for a big punishment, which he said
The mariner committed a ghastly crime against nature, when he as a joke took the life of an innocent albatross. Relayed in following, “Instead of the cross, the Albatross About my neck was hung” (Coleridge 827 lines 141 & 142). The previous quote expresses that as punishment, to pay for the mariner’s senseless crime of shooting the albatross down with a crossbow; the mariner must wear the corpse of the dead sea bird around his neck. The mariner’s crewmates are the ones who force this upon the mariner. They place the bird around the mariner’s neck and do not allow him to remove the rotting sea bird. The mariner’s fellow crewmates are very displeased with the mariner’s actions. The mariner’s crewmates understood that the albatross was a good omen, and was helping them through the doldrums. Ever since the sea bird appeared, and the sailors started treating the bird well, the ice split open and the ship started to sail away from the frigid pole, filled with various glaciers, and inevitable death. The mariner was cursed in the aftermath of murdering the albatross. Importantly, the mariner was not cursed for shooting the bird, but for his disrespect for life. All the albatross did was help the sailors along and hung around the ship, the mariner killed the albatross as a joke. Therefore, the mariner must face some sort of recompense. Further expressed by Marilyn Gaull, contributor to Wordsworth Circle, “A righteous soul will have infinite respect for all forms of life.” Once again, expressing the point that one must respect all life. Thus, understandable that the albatross is a symbol of guilt, originating from the senseless, disrespectful crime of the mariner against
Overall “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” is poem that seems like a simple story told by a sailor about his woes at sea. But Coleridge uses many details to make symbols throughout the story for the reader to interpret and see the connections between it and religion. Whether it be through the Christ like albatross, which most would just see as a simple bird, or the woman on the boat showing how the lifestyle might be fun but ultimate leads to nothing we see that these small details create a bigger story than what is just on the cover.
The Albatross, as a representative of nature, means nothing to the Mariner. These thoughts are quickly changed, though, as Nature begins to start the penance leading towards forgiveness - "Water, water, everywhere nor any drop to drink." When "the mariner begins to find his salvation when he begins to look on the 'slimy things' as creatures of strange beauty" (Fraser 203), he understands the Albatross was a symbol of nature and he realized what he had done wrong. The mariner is forgiven after sufficient penance - "We could not speak" - is performed by Nature.
“The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” is a poem about the struggles a mariner goes through on his voyage on the sea. It is said that, “the dead men stood together,” on his ship’s deck. The curse that has caused his sailors to die is not specified and also not forgotten by the captain. The ship continues to sail as, “there breathed a wind on [the mariner]”. The wind gust only blew on the sailor and the hairs on his neck proceeded to stand up. This implies the curse that took the other sailors’ lives. It is showing its presence to the lone man and the despair and regret he feels. Finally, the sailor reaches harbor where “a seraph-man, on every corpse there stood”. This quote explains how upon each dead sailor’s body there was an angel as well. Suddenly the captain, “heard the dash of oars, [he] heard the Pilot’s cheer,” and in an instant a pilot and his son came to rescue the sailor from his despair. The reader can then see a desire for repentance when the mariner asks the captain to forgive him of his sins.
In The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Samuel Coleridge writes of a sailor bringing a tale to life as he speaks to a wedding guest. An ancient Mariner tells of his brutal journey through the Pacific Ocean to the South Pole. Coleridge suffers from loneliness, because of his lifelong need for love and livelihood; similarly, during the Mariner’s tale, his loneliness shows when he becomes alone at sea, because of the loss of his crew. Having a disastrous dependence to opium and laudanum, Coleridge, in partnership with Wordsworth, writes this complicated, difficult to understand, yet appealing poem, which becomes the first poem in the 1798 edition of Lyrical Ballads. The Mariner’s frame of mind flip-flops throughout the literary ballad, a songlike poem that tells a story, which could be a result of Coleridge’s horrible addiction. Using the senses of seeing, feeling, and hearing as the Mariner tells his tale to a wedding guest in The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Coleridge demonstrates the use of many sensory details as the ancient Mariner speaks to a wedding guest.
The mariner begins to find his salvation when he begins to look on the 'slimy things' as creatures of strange beauty. When "the mariner begins to find his salvation when he begins to look on the 'slimy things' as creatures of strange beauty" he understands the Albatross is a symbol of nature and he realizes what he had done wrong. The mariner is forgiven after sufficient penance. The mariner's experience represents a renewal of the impulse of love towards other living things. Once he reconciles his punishment is lifted.
...ous allegory represents Christian ideals such as sin, forgiveness, and prayer. In addition, Coleridge’s use of language and form contribute to the message conveyed in the text. The form fluctuates throughout the text by use of different rhyme schemes, loose meter, and stanzas in length varying four to nine lines. The variety of form could be representative the array of interpretations of this text. Coleridge conveys profound religious meaning by using symbolic language with interpretive representations. Although his use of elevated language possibly narrowed the audience, that could have been his intentions due to the complexities of this philosophical poem. In the end, Coleridge’s depiction of the Mariner’s journey ultimately conveys the Christian ideal, which is to love and appreciate all creatures created by God, whether Albatross or snake.
The albatross is another significant symbol throughout the poem. It first appears in the first section of the poem, and it is a symbol of good omen for the sailors. The albatross is a white bird, which is probably the reason why many Christians of the time saw it as a holy symbol, which made it a good omen. In this poem, the albatross symbolizes good fortune. When the Mariner kills the albatross, for absolutely no reason, the good fortune that has come upon the ship leaves. Symbolically, the Mariner did not kill a simple seabird, but an omen of good fortune and luck, which is why all of the bad things happen to the sailors and the Mariner. The albatross goes from being a symbol of god fortune to one of guilt when it is hung around the Mariner's neck as a sign of what he has done.
As the ancient Mariner described his adventures at sea to the Wedding-Guest, the Guest became saddened because he identified his own selfish ways with those of the Mariner. The mariner told the Guest that he and his ship-mates were lucky because at the beginning of their voyage they had good weather. The mariner only saw what was on the surface -- he did not see the good weather as evidence that Someone was guiding them. Also, when he shot the Albatross, the Mariner did not have any reason for doing so. The Albatross did nothing wrong, yet the Mariner thought nothing of it and without thinking of the significance of the act, he killed the bird. At this, the Guest was reminded of how self-absorbed he, too, was, and the sinful nature of man. At the beginning of the poem he was very much intent on arriving at the wedding on time. He did not care at all about what it was that the Mariner had to tell him; he did not want to be detained even if the Mariner was in trouble. Instead, he spoke rudely to the mariner, calling him a "gray-beard loon", and tried to go on his own way.
The Albatross Around Your Own Neck (An analysis of 3 messages from Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner”) Literary devices are used by every author of every piece of literature to enhance the meaning and development of their message. Authors are trying to leave their reader with one form of impression or another, and literary devices are what helps them to accomplish this task. These devices include things such as allusion, symbolism, imagery, simile, metaphor, and so on and so forth. “Poetic representation plays with connotative structures and literary devices to convey meanings” (Richardson).
They involve the respect for nature, but mostly on the subject of sin and redemption, the Mariner’s wrongdoing and all that penance the Mariner must endure to learn this fact. All the while, Coleridge uses metaphoric imagery and stylistic phrasing to shape the world and mood that changes in correspondence with each part of the Mariner’s journey. A major symbol that sticks out the most is the albatross, as the Mariner must wear its corpse after his action, signifying the sin to bear. It is not until he blesses the creatures of the sea that it drops from his neck, soon blessed with sleep and rain.
Starting with the wedding scene, the Mariner is described very vividly, “By thy long grey beard, and glittering eye…” (Coleridge pg 937). As the third sentence of the poem, Coleridge makes sure that the reader is able to envision the face of the Mariner. After the Mariner kills the Albatross, Life-in-Death was there for revenge“Her lips were red...looks were free...locks were yellow as gold: her skin was as white as leprosy” (Coleridge pg 942). Not only does this paint a very stark picture of what is going to happen, this helps the reader visualize the Mariners consequence for killing the Albatross. With this poetic device, Coleridge helps the reader imagine the story in their mind 's eye and connect with the repercussions of the Mariners mistake.
... of a broken and essentially conciliatory force. When seen in these terms, it seems that the mariner may be the image with which Coleridge most closely identified himself, but both are symbols of his creative process.