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Use of symbolism in the life of the ancient mariner
Use of symbolism in the life of the ancient mariner
Symbolism in the life of the ancient mariner
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As the saying goes no good deed goes unrewarded. Coleridge, in his poem The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, tells a story that no evil deed shall go unpunished. For every action there is an appropriate consequence equal to or greater than the original action. In the poem, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Coleridge explains this through the crime committed by the ancient Mariner and the consequences forced upon him for his actions as seemed fit by the spiritual world.
The albatross had flown to the side of the Mariner’s ship and guided the ship through the fog. “At lengths did cross an albatross through the fog it came; As if it had been a Christian soul, we hailed it in God’s name.”(64-66). Coleridge tells us that the albatross was a god given gift from the spiritual world. The Ancient Mariner decided to shoot the Albatross with a cross bow “God save thee, Ancient Mariner! From the fiends, that plague thee thus! Why look’st thou so? With my cross bow I shot the Albatross!”(78-82). Because of the Ancient Mariner actions taking the life of a living creature, the right which they believed belonging only to the spiritual world, the spiritual beings punish the Mariner in several different ways.
The first way and probably the most drastic in which the spirits punished the Mariner were through the actions of Mother Nature. As soon as the bird was killed the wind that propelled the ship became still. It wasn’t long before the Mariner realized the consequences of his actions, “for all averred, I had killed the bird that made the breeze to blow.”, then suddenly “down dropped the breeze, the sails dropped down, Twas sad as sad could be; and we did speak only to break the silence of the sea!” (35). Since the Albatross was a gift from t...
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...ny. The only way for the Mariner to ease his pain is by telling others his story, which at that point he begins feels alive again.
In conclusion I think overall the punishment is fit for the Ancient Mariner. Having to be forced to live forever drifting aimlessly throughout life, much like his cursed ship at sea without any wind. Perilously searching for anybody to tell his story too, simply for temporary relief of an eternal pain seems deserving of his crime. Death sometimes can actually be a blessing because no longer must one live with their mistakes. If someone was to kill a man he would be punished to the fullest extent of the law. Therefore there should also be punishment for murders of sacred beings as well. Coleridge clearly expresses the same beliefs and expresses this through his character and events presented in his poem The Rime of the Ancient Mariner.
Lepore, Amy. "Why does the Mariner kill the albatross? What is the symbolic nature of the action?" Enotes.com. Enotes Inc., n.d. Web. 17 Mar. 2014. .
Despite their differences, Marlow and the Mariner both portray similar facets of human nature. They embark on similar journeys, and share a like fate in the end. Each of them shares a complex moral ambiguity. It is this quality that drives many key events of both Heart of Darkness and The Rime of the Ancient Mariner. And it is also their moral ambiguity that allows for the development of the intricate revelations which make these works great.
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
Coleridge uses religious and natural symbolism, which correspond with one another and play the most important roles in this poem. Although there are many different interpretations of this poem, one idea that has remained common throughout the poem is that of the religious symbolism present. Especially that of Christ and his ability to save, which was present throughout this poem. The symbolism is that of the albatross. The albatross saves the Mariner for bad weather and keeps the sailors in
Next, the Albatross gives the sailors a feeling of prosperity, while the Raven gives the old man a feeling of remorse. The Raven’s presence and repeatedly saying “Nevermore” reminds the...
The main theme of Samuel Taylor Coleridge's poem is to learn from your mistakes. After telling his tale to the Wedding Guest, the Ancient Mariner realized that the murder of the Albatross was a mistake and lived a life of penance. The act of murder was an impulsive act because the Mariner felt threatened by the Albatross their actions. The deaths of both birds brought about memories from both the Ancient Mariner and Hagar which they shared with other people, the Wedding Guest and Murray F. Lees. These memories help them to realize the mistakes they made. Through their own personal recollections, the Ancient Mariner and Hagar both achieved a better understanding of their lives and in turn were able to die with a sense of contentment and relief.
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 resolution of the Mariners decision caused him and his shipmates to fall into a curse, which led the Mariner into an eternal penance. The Mariners penances was to retell the story of what a Mariner's choice against nature he made and the events that he went through at sea. After the death of the Albatross, the Mariner felt as if he was pull down by a curse. The vengeance of the curse occurs as a result of his actions, leading towards the Mariner's shipmates souls being taken away. Following the death of the Mariner's soul, the Mariner began to experienced redemptions against the decisions he
This action against nature is rather extreme, for he takes this thought of death lightly. The Albatross, as a representative of nature, means nothing to the Mariner. These thoughts are quickly changed, though, as Nature begins to start the punishment for his crimes commence when there is, "Water, water, everywhere nor any drop to drink." He is punished harshly for killing the symbol of nature that everyone reveres. He is beaten down by the sun with its rays and is taunted by the endless sight of water that he cannot drink.
The catalyst for the emergence of Christian symbolism occurs when the mariner commits a sin by murdering one of God’s creatures. By killing the albatross, he inevitably brings about a series of trials amongst himself and those aboard the ship. Though the significance of this sin is first unseen by the mariner, supernatural forces quickly condemn his actions as a severe crime against nature. With no real reason, the mariner kills the albatross and soon realizes the magnitude of his actions. Viewed beyond simply a good luck charm, “At length did cross an Albatross, Through the fog it came; As if it had been a Christian soul, We hailed it in God’s name” (ll. 63-6). The idea of the Albatross representing Jesus Christ is a direct parallel in the Christian religion. The death of the Albatross is reminiscent of the death of Jesus in that both died as a result of another’s sin and betrayal of God’s word. Similar accounts of betrayal are portrayed ...
(16) The two represent a parallel to the Ghost Ship and snakes. (17) The Albatross symbolizes a connection to god, “He loved the bird that loved the man who shot him with his bow”(405-406).(18) God loved the Albatross so dearly that, when the Mariner shot it down, earned the stupid mortal his curse of being an empty wanderer .(19) The other parallel symbol included by Coleridge is the spirits, they have a tie or a connection to God in the same sense as the Albatross that is contrasting to the snakes.(20)
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.
In two works by Coleridge, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner and Kubla Khan, both works regard the imagination as vitally important. In the Ancient Mariner, the imagination (or rather, the lack of it) condemns the Mariner to a kind of hell, with the fiends of sterility, solitude, and loneliness: “’God save thee, Ancient Mariner, from the fiends that plague thee thus! Why look’st thou so?’ ‘With my crossbow I shot the Albatross’”. In Kubla Khan, the imagination of an external being, the narrator that Coleridge created, the ideal critic, can create a masterpiece that far outstrips the meager piece of work that even the emperor of a huge, rich civilization can produce: “I would build that dome in air, a sunny dome! Those caves of ice! And all who heard should see them there, and all should cry, Beware! Beware!” In Kubla Khan, the imagination can even make people fear an otherwise inconsequential event, sequence, or organism.
He has to feel a pain in his chest that becomes unbearable until he sees a certain soul that is the right one to tell. No matter what. In the long poem, “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” by Samuel Taylor Coleridge has three lessons about human life: supernatural, pride, and suffering. In “Rime” by Sam Coleridge, the mariner goes through many supernatural events that scare him into submission. Coleridge does a great job of describing the scenery around the boat that the mariner resides in.
In discussing the symbolism of guilt in "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner", it is important to understand that in the eyes of the Romantics God was one with Nature. Because of this belief a sin against Nature was seen as a sin against God. In line 82 of the poem, the Mariner simply says, "I shot the Albatross." In saying this, the reader often questions why the bird was shot. There is no explanation. The Albatross was shot without reason or motive very much like the sin of humans. Here the poem begins to take on its allegorical purpose in which the Albatross symbolizes not only sin, but possibly Jesus as well. In Christianity, Jesus died upon the cross for the sins of humanity. He was punished in order for ...