Ancient Mariner Innocence

As the ghost ship nears, a spell is cast upon the ship and all of the mariner's young crew fall dead. The mariner is able to see the souls of his crew leave their bodies and it is at this point which he begins to feel remorse and guilt. "and every soul, it passed me by, like the wiz of my cross-bow!" (Coleridge 222). the mariner now knows that it was his actions that caused this and must take accountability for what he has done. Coleridge's use of the word "bow" in this quote is very important. It shows that now he does feel remorse for killing the bird because he feels it was as if his own bow killed those men. As the mariner begins to accept all f this information, he begins to realize that this is not his home. This is the home of nature and because he is a guest on these waters, he should appreciate it. "the many men, so beautiful! And they all dead and lie: and a thousand slimy things lived on; and so did I." (Coleridge 236). Now that the mariner has taken responsibility for his actions, he looks to God for forgiveness. Through prayer, he tries to ask for forgiveness but knows that in order to reach it, he must first repent. "I looked to heaven, and tried to pray; but or ever a prayer had gusht, a wicked whisper came, and made my heart dry as dust." (Coleridge 244).

The symbolism in the “Rhyme of the ancient mariner” is said to be an impossible representation of the Christian story of reconciliation from sin, redemption and forgiveness for that sin, but the symbolism in this poem clearly contradicts those views. The poem is one of a great sin committed against nature and the supernatural - being God - and how the wrong doer was redeemed from that sin and his journey into realigning what he had done. The Mariner was punished for his sin by the supernatural and forces of nature while he was glorified by his crew mates for his skill that was shown in killing the albatross with a crossbow. This is often true in Biblical stories and modern day where one is glorified for earthly talents and is given fame, but what they are famous for contradicts God and his law. Other aspects of Christianity are embedded in this poem as well that are easily overlooked like when the Mariner prays to some force he does not know. He is guilty for his transgression and knows what he has done is wrong although the sin was committed with ill will not intended. Lastly this poem displays a value important to Christianity, but also to all other ideologies and the is the topic of justice for crimes committed and the Christian aspect of thats once justice is served salvation is needed and redemption takes place. All of these values presented by symbolism throughout this poem all point toward the idea that the story of the Mariner was meant to serve as an example of the

By killing the albatross, the Mariner sets in motion Christianity’s idea that all except Jesus are sinners, but through repentance one can seek forgiveness and ultimately salvation. However, Coleridge poses a dichotomy regarding the transparency of forgiveness in this ballad. After the Mariner blesses the snakes, the reader presumes the curse was lifted and forgiveness was granted. Although the “Albatross fell off, and sank Like lead into the sea” (288-91), the Mariner was compelled to serve a long-term penance of continually repeating his tale, also serving as a constant reminder of his sin. Where as Christianity teaches that by repenting one achieves forgiveness, Coleridge enacts the idea of retribution in order for the Mariner to ultimately attain God’s forgiveness. For example, one of nature’s punishments taunts the Mariner with extreme thirst, causing him to cry out:

In Samuel Tayler Coleridge’s The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Coleridge uses many supernatural, macabre, and Gothic elements to get his theme across to the reader. These elements include: the strange weather, the Albatross, Death and Life-in-Death, the multiple spirits, the madness of the pilot and his boy. In The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, the weather goes through some strange and inexplicable changes.

Arguably one of Coleridge’s most famous poems, “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” concerns an old sailor’s tale of a nautical journey. In the story his ship falls upon poor weather and wind, forcing he and the crew to Antarctica. Miraculously a seabird called an albatross appears and leads the ship and crew out of despair. Despite this good fortune, the Mariner shoots the albatross. The weather clears soon after, and the men support his sin.

The flood withdrew. Every animal, from human to toad, was released into the world and graciously led to have children of their own- both doves included. However, in The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, the audience accompanies the bird as it has a different fate. Coleridge has the Mariner assure the audience “I shot the Albatross” (82). By destroying a gift given by God, the mariner is setting into motion a series of ill-fated

In The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, the Ancient Mariner’s attitude towards animals drastically changes over the course of the poem. He starts by ignoring animals, then progresses to taking an interest in animals and comparing them to himself, before he grows to love animals and spreads word of how important it is to appreciate animals.

misery. The Mariner admits his fault and accepts his penalty; hence he survives with the burden

Written by Samuel Taylor Coleridge, “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” is a poet depicting the adventures and experiences of a mariner sailing the seas. Throughout the poem, there a many literary devices that bring the tale to life and help the readers understand the turmoil that the mariner went through. Those devices include, but are not limited to, personification, metaphors, alliteration, and assonances. Without the use of these elements, the poem would not have been as effective. One of the most prominent literary devices that Coleridge uses in “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” is personification.

After the bird was murdered, their first instinct was to be upset with the Mariner for killing a sacred creature. “And I had done a hellish thing, And it would work ‘em woe: For all averred, I had killed the bird That made the breeze to blow. Ah wretch! Said they, the bird to slay, That made the breeze to blow!”

The poems’ histories will be kept brief as they are not the focus of the paper; so, put simply, “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” was written by Samuel Taylor Coleridge and was published in 1798 in a collaborative volume entitled Lyrical Ballads (“Samuel Taylor Coleridge”). For further historical context, it was during this year that the US Navy was originally formed (“Historical Events in 1798”). And while the origin of “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” is pretty straightforward, that of “The Seafarer” is more complicated. Originally it was anonymously included in a tenth-century text called The Exeter Book (Shmoop Editorial Team), but the more well known version is its reinterpretation by Ezra Pound, published in 1912 (“The Seafarer: RPO”). However, since Pound changed many of the original details and themes (“The Seafarer: RPO”), we’re going to be looking at an English translation of the original poem. Again, for further historical context, it was during the tenth century that the Chinese started making paper money, the Byzantine empire underwent a revival, and the feudal knight was popularized (“10th century - Oxford Reference”). Despite both poems being published nearly 800 years apart, they share a great many similarities. So without further ado, let’s delve into the surface similarities between the two poems.

Before he killed the albatross, he treats animals with careless thoughts as he just shoots the albatross because he feels fun doing it. After he had killed it, he realizes that he was wrong and his action was contradicted against Christians’ belief. Wearing the albatross on his neck symbolizes he is bothered by his

"The Rime of the Ancient Mariner is a parable of a seaman's crime against nature (pointlessly killing an albatross) and his repentance by blessing the lowly water-snakes.  Setting the poem in the Middle Ages in the then-unknown seas near Antarctica, the poet is able to make his narrative credible and give the reader what is called 'the willing suspension of disbelief.'  "

The first message from “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” by Coleridge is that we have to protect the innocents from being killed. In the poem they should have protected the albatross from being killed because the albatross was an innocent bird that some thought was lucky and a sign of good luck. “He prayeth well, who loveth well Both man and bird and beast”(lines 612-613) this is saying that animals are always innocent. Out there are some people who are innocent to and it would be bad if we didn’t protect them because I think some of them would die. We have to keep those innocent people and animals safe. The old man in this story was kind of cursed from shooting that bird and now has to tell his story to younger people so they can learn from his mistakes.

Samuel Taylor Coleridge based his narrative poem, “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner,” around the sanctity of nature, especially that of the albatross, a large sea bird who was a sign of good luck to the sailors aboard the mariner’s ship. After the ancient mariner inhospitably kills their good omen, everything starts to fall apart. The mariner eventually is trapped in a solitary, never-ending penance, telling certain people his story. The people he tells however, do not appreciate the story because it points out their lack of spirituality, especially in the case of the wedding-guest. Coleridge, like Blake in “The Lamb,” relates animals and nature to Godliness.