Analysis of " The Rime of the Ancient Mariner" by Samuel Coleridge

“The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” by Samuel Coleridge represents the clash of mysticism and religion, with imagination. The poem beings when the ancient mariner is telling guests at a wedding about his journey at sea, this story evolves into morale that others should abide by and transforms the imagination of his journey at sea to represent the wrath and goodness of god. Coleridge uses various symbols and expands on poetic concepts to represent the mariner’s journey, beginning with the albatross serving as a good omen and a journey led by good wind and fair weather. Then for no explicable reason, the mariner kills the albatross, bringing about terrible weather, and the sprit of the albatross avenging its death. Consequently, we see the mariner and his fellow seamen struggle through terrible weather, on the verge of death and cannibalism, when the mariner ultimately prays to god for mercy. Finally, the mariner is relieved of his dreadful act, as the weather improves and his men are lifted by the spirit from their former stance, eventually leading to land. “The Rime of the Ancient Marnier,” not only expresses the extent of Coleridge’s vast imagination and his interest in creating a sense of topography within one’s imagination, but he also reveals his religious ideals and the sense of mysticisms that exists within one’s life.

“ The Wedding- Guest sat on a stone: He cannot choose but hear; and thus spake on that ancient man, the bright-eyed Mariner.” As suggested above, in lines 17- 20, this is how the tale of the mariner begins, as he is attending a wedding party, he enthralls attention from the wedding audience to listen to a ravishing and ravaged tale at sea. However, no one knows the intentions of his tale, but his beckoning and over-powering voice draws attention away from the wedding party to his own tale. Like most tales at sea, the mariners story starts of with good intentions and great sea-faring weather, however they suddenly hit with a problem of titanic proportions, “The ice was here, the ice was there, the ice was all around: it crack’d and growl’d, and roar’d and howl’d, like noises in a swound! (Lines 59- 62)” Basically, just as the mariner’s sea-faring journey was going well, they were hit by dreadful circumstances, ice, which could be deadly to the ship if one is unaware of how to navigate through the ice.

However, just as the mariner’s journey took a deadly twist, a good omen sweeps through the ship and leads them through the treachous ice to safe waters. This is evident in lines 64-70, “ At length did cross an Albatross, through the fog it came; as if it had been a Christian soul, we hail’d it in god’s name. It ate the food it ne’er had eat, and round and round it flew. The ice split with a thunder-fit; the helmsman steer’d as through!” In turn, Coleridge points out that the albatross bird serves as good omen, steering them through ice and bringing them to manageable waters. Consequently, one could infer that the albatross represents the spirit of god, when one is dealing with difficult times god has a peculiar way of raising hope and allowing one to get through tough times. Thus, not only does Coleridge set up a hypothetical-mystical geographic understanding of the land that the mariner is about to embark upon. But, Coleridge sets up a premise for his audience at the beginning of the poem by introducing a sea-faring mariner about to embark on a treacherous journey, saved by god’s messenger in the nick of time.  However, the mariner’s treacherous act is about to take him on an unfaithful turn of events.             

“ And I had done an hellish thing, and it would work’em woe: For all averr’d, I had kill’d the bird that made breeze blow. Ah wretch! The bird to slay, that made the breeze to blow! ” As stated above in lines 91-96, the mariner had killed the albatross bird with his cross bow, and was unthankful and spiteful of the act that had allowed them great weather and the ability to navigate through ice. Concurrently, Coleridge makes a sudden shift of the environment to represent what was good and holy that had brought about great sea-faring weather, and shifts to deceitful and vengeful weather foreshadowed by the mariner’s act, forewarning the events that were about to ensue. In turn, in lines 120- 123, Coleridge says, “ water, water, everywhere, and all the boards did shrink; water, water everywhere, nor any drop to drink.” These lines represent the boat close to being shipwrecked; the wrath of god when one commits an act against his beautiful creatures, and foretells the difficult events that that mariner and his comrades are about to face.

“And some in dreams assured were of the spirit plagued us so; nine fathom deep he followed us from the land of mist and snow.” As suggested by lines 131- 134, Coleridge represents the albatross bird as a good omen, a gift from god when one is facing hard times, however we see the transformation that the albatross makes from a good omen to a vengeful spirit that wants the mariner and his comrades to see the result of their hateful crime and their unappreciative nature. He also represents good and bad through the topography, linking the albatross with great sea-faring weather and crediting it’s ability to break up the ice and navigate the ship through rough waters, likewise the spirit represents the merciless side of god when his gifts are not appreciated, and the mariner and his crew are shipwrecked and are weary, unable to drink water and un- aroused to take charge.

“There passed a weary time. Each throat was parch’d, and glazed each eye. A weary time! A weary time!” As suggested by lines 144 -146, the mariners were faced by vengeful wrath of god, and they were holding onto any spirit within them to get through this time, with no water to drink and weariness setting them in a stance between earth and afterlife, the tried to maintain what life they had left. This is evident in lines 159 – 160, “through utter drought all dumb we stood! I bite my arm, I suck’d the blood.” In turn, to maintain some life and sustenance, the mariner resorted to drink his blood to prevent his body from going fully numb. Consequently, Coleridge represents the perseverance of the spirit to teach the mariner a lesson. However, the mariner does feel a sense of remorse and that is evident in lines 241 -244. “I look’d upon the rotting sea, and drew my eyes away; I look’d upon the rotting deck; and there the dead men lay.” In turn, the mariner feels guilt for the act he committed and sees the consequences for his actions as his companions are slowly dying. Nonetheless, he turns back to god and prays for forgiveness and asks that the spirit be broken.

“I look’d to heaven, and tried to pray; But or ever a prayer had gusht, A wicked whisper came, and made my heart as dry as dust.” In lines 245- 248, we see a shift in the mariner as he transforms from killing the albatross in spite, to facing the consequences of his actions, finally remorseful of his actions and praying to god for forgiveness. Coleridge also loves using the eerie topography of one’s imagination to represent the various aspects of the mariner’s journey. Finally, after what has been a long and winding journey for the mariner and his companions, all faith is not lost as god appears within the confines of Coleridge’s imagination and takes pity upon the mariner’s soul. This is evident in lines 283- 288, “ O happy living things! No tongue their beauty might declare: a spring of love gush’d from my heart, and I bless’d them unaware: sure my kind saint took pity on me, and I bless’d them unaware.” In turn, this represents the mariner breaking free from the curse that has been placed upon him, and the tides of the poem changes as the spirit overtakes the mariner and his comrades to fulfill the rest of the journey.   

“The silly buckets on the deck, that had so long remain’d, I dreamt that they were fill’d with dew and when I awaoke, it rain’d” As represented in lines 298- 301, the rain symbolizes a new or clean start and purging of impurities, it also represents the change in topography from the mist and snow to rain, as well as mariner’s being brought back to life from their previous parched and lowly state. Consequently, in lines 332 – 335, “They groan’d, they stirr’d, they all uprose, nor spake, nor moved their eyes; it had been strange, even in a dream, to have seen those dead men rise.” In turn, this represents the complete break of the curse, as the mariner’s comrades arise and the spirit uplifts them to be fully functional again. Finally, the curse has been broken, water has been replenished, the men regain energy through the spirit and the weather has improved, the intrinsic power within the mariners and his companions lead them to a familiar and reassuring site, land.

           Samuel Coleridge loves to make inferences to god and uses various symbols to represent god through out the poem, he also portrays a sense of mysticism through the weather and the eerie journey of the mariner. As the topography changes throughout the mariner’s journey, so does the mariner’s attitude and the consequences of his actions, it is almost as if Coleridge is trying to prove that one’s actions always has consequences, and hence this is mirrored between the mariner’s actions and the nature of weather and its consequences, as well as the nature of god.  In turn, I believe the reason that the mariner tells the wedding party about his journey because as his voyage ends and he has learned his lessons, likewise counted his blessings, another has begun and he wants them to learn from his actions and his mistakes.