Supernatural elements in The Rime of the Ancient Mariner

The Rime of the Ancient Mariner is considered the best poem written by Samuel Taylor Coleridge, and various factors have contributed to making it such a memorable poem. Students studying English literature read this poem in almost every university in the world. The poet’s use of supernatural elements is one of the features that has made this poem so unforgettable.

Normally, we can see that poets frequently incorporate supernatural elements when writing epic poems. If we think about The Iliad or The Odyssey, we can easily recall the presence of gods and goddesses and other supernatural elements that play a significant role in these two epics. In poetry, supernatural elements are quite common, and almost every poet during the Romantic age used such elements.

William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge were close friends, and they decided to present nature in opposite ways. Wordsworth was supposed to write about natural things with a supernatural treatment. In other words, he would try to show simple things exceptionally. On the other hand, Coleridge was supposed to present supernatural elements with a natural treatment. In other words, he was supposed to present supernatural or abnormal things in a very normal and natural way. In The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, we can find this concept very clearly.

Coleridge also used the idea of the willing suspension of disbelief very successfully. While reading this poem, we know that many things are impossible, but we forget this and try to stay with the poet, accepting them as reality. This willing suspension of disbelief is at its greatest in this poem by S.T. Coleridge.

If we want to think about the supernatural elements, we have to consider the beginning of the poem. The Ancient Mariner started talking to the wedding guest in such a way that he became engrossed as if he were hypnotized. He could not move from the spot and was almost forced to listen to the Mariner. Thus, the Mariner had a magnetic power to attract the wedding guests. The writer says:

“He holds him with his glittering eye -

The Wedding-Guest stood still,

And listens like a three years’ child:

The Mariner hath his will.”

The Albatross was not a simple bird. In our everyday life, we often kill animals and birds, but the Albatross that the Ancient Mariner killed was more than an ordinary bird. It was a supernatural element, and after killing it, he suffered greatly and was severely punished by God. It was a test for the Mariner, and he failed, but later he tried to atone for his sin.

Perhaps the scariest supernatural elements in this poem are the dead sailors who came back to life and started to walk and perform their everyday tasks. The Ancient Mariner was the only living person, and the other sailors became dead men who awoke. Even imagining it can make a person feel afraid. He says:

“They groaned, they stirred, they all uprose,

Nor spake, nor moved their eyes;

It had been strange, even in a dream,

To have seen those dead men rise.”

However, as I stated earlier, Coleridge presented the supernatural elements in such a way that they seemed normal to us as readers. When we consider that all the sailors were ghosts, yet they were moving like normal people, it feels strangely natural. Even the Mariner felt it was normal, and he was suffering so much that he could not even react or think much about the matter.

Towards the end, the water snakes are also somewhat supernatural because they are not ordinary or natural snakes. They were special, and it was a test for the Ancient Mariner. He had failed his earlier test with the Albatross, but this time he did not fail. Instead, he prayed for them, and this unselfish and loving act saved him in the end. He says:

“Beyond the shadow of the ship

I watched the water-snakes:

They moved in tracks of shining white,

And when they reared, the elfish light

Fell off in hoary flakes.”

Following the Mariner’s foolish killing of the albatross, Coleridge conjures up a spirit known as “the Polar Spirit,” which brings rain and storms upon the beleaguered ship. Whether it is a pagan or divine spirit, it governs the material world to punish the Ancient Mariner and awaken his sense of awe.

Death and Life-in-Death are two important supernatural elements in The Rime of the Ancient Mariner. The Ancient Mariner discovered these two figures on the deck of the ship when he got a closer look. Death was embodied as a naked man, whereas Life-in-Death had the beauty of a woman. The poet terrifyingly described these two supernatural figures. They were seen deciding the Mariner’s fate with a dice.

The solitary Spirit from the South Pole travels aboard the ship until it reaches the Line, in compliance with the angelic troop, but still requires vengeance. The fellow demons of the Polar Spirit participated in his wrongdoing, and two of them converse with each other, stating that a lengthy and arduous penance has been granted to the Ancient Mariner by the Polar Spirit, who has returned.

Additionally, the Ancient Mariner heard the message of God from angels. The Almighty God, being the most powerful, granted forgiveness to the Mariner. Here, we can see that God is gracious to those who want to be good and punishes those who act wrongly. So, Coleridge tried to present this image of God by stating that even if we make mistakes, if we try to return to a righteous life and seek God’s forgiveness for our wrongdoings, God will always extend His mercy toward us.

In The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Coleridge portrays the supernatural elements primarily in a favorable light. It seems that he wanted to convey the idea that people are the ones who cause problems for themselves, not the supernatural elements. Human beings should try to follow the right path and show love toward nature and its elements. They should also show kindness and mercy toward all of God’s creatures. 

Relationship between man and nature in “Dejection: An Ode”

“Dejection: An Ode” is one of the best poems of Samuel Taylor Coleridge, and here, we can find that the poet has talked in detail about nature. Nature was the most important aspect of the Romantic Movement in English literature. It was William Wordsworth who is credited with the starting of the movement, but what we often forget is that his close friend S.T. Coleridge had almost equal contribution at the beginning of the Romantic Movement. To Wordsworth, nature was very important, and Coleridge did not disagree with this view, but he had some differences with Wordsworth about the role of nature in human life and in poetry. In “Dejection: An Ode,” Coleridge has tried to talk in detail about the relationship between man and nature.

The first thing that catches our attention is that “Dejection: An Ode” is a sophisticated and philosophical exploration of the relationship between man and nature. No other romantic poet was perhaps so much philosophical like Coleridge. In this poem, Coleridge has explored his own crisis in life, and he has expressed his sadness and depression. Coleridge is most of the time melancholic. His inner self is expressed in the poem, and by reading it, we can find that he was very sad when he wrote the poem. However, this poem is more than his own sadness. It is a poem that explores philosophically the problems in life, and it also tries to find out the answer to the relation between man and nature.

Coleridge had a different view from Wordsworth about the role of nature in human life. But it does not mean that he thought that nature was not important. In fact, he has expressed or indicated the importance of nature, and we can find that the wind is helping him to express his imagination.

Although it was a sad poem, in “Dejection: An Ode,” we can find a very nice and powerful description of nature. For example, the beauty of the sky before the storm has been expressed in a very nice way. This beauty of the sky brings happiness and brings new feelings to the mind of the poet. He is sad and depressed, but he can see the beautiful sky. In fact, by his description, the readers also feel happy, and the readers can imagine the beauty of the sky and the beauty of nature.

Coleridge tries to state that nature cannot inspire him because he is very sad. He has lost the strength of youth both physically and emotionally, and he is depressed. He is in a melancholic condition, and he feels that nature cannot inspire him and change his mood. However, in some of his descriptions of nature and especially his descriptions of the beauty of nature, the readers can feel that Coleridge is influenced somewhat by nature. Otherwise, he would not be able to describe the beauty of nature in such a powerful way. If nature really did not have any relationship in his life, he would not be able to compose such a beautiful poem with such a good description of nature.

There is some joy and happiness and hope, and nature can give us a new earth and new heaven. Even in the depressing description of life, it seems to us that there is some hope in Coleridge about the future, and nature shows him that hope.

According to Coleridge, the relationship between nature and human life is giving and taking. He gets delight and confidence from nature, but he has lost his happiness. The stormy night reflects the stormy and tough conditions in Coleridge’s life.

In “Dejection: An Ode,” Coleridge has expressed that he lost his creativity and he lost the happiness of life, but it does not mean that nature has lost its importance totally. There is still a lot of bond between him and nature and even in total depression and frustration; he can see the beauty of nature. Any discussion about this poem would remind the readers about Wordsworth. Wordsworth wrote his immortality ode almost at the same time and critics often talk about these two poems and about the relationship between human beings and nature. To Wordsworth, the relationship between human beings and nature was direct and very strong. To Coleridge, it was not direct, but still, it was strong.

Theme of loss in “Dejection: An Ode”

Samuel Taylor Coleridge was a great poet in English literature, but it was his bad luck that he could not create too many poems because of his personal problems. “Dejection: An Ode” is one of the best poems written by him, and it is a poem about sadness and depression. It was written at a time when Coleridge was suffering from many problems and he lost hope in life and future. It is the poem of a desperate man in a desperate condition, but still, it has all the artistic beauty of an excellent poem. From the first to the last, the poet talks about sadness and emotional emptiness. He talks like a frustrated person- a person who has been defeated in life.

Mood of dejection is clearly visible throughout the poem. His losses are so much that he has lost everything in life and he cannot enjoy anything. He can see the beauty in nature, but he cannot enjoy it. Instead, everything in nature looks to him dull and lifeless. He cannot find any hope and happiness even in nature. To him, everything is meaningless and the mood of dejection is dominant in his mind. It is like that he has accepted his defeat and resigned from life. He is not even in a mood to try for the future and he has no emotional strength.

The poet in the poem “Dejection: An Ode” has an elderly and mature tone. He does not have the hope and vigor for life like his young days. Coleridge accepts that his youth has passed not only physically but also emotionally. He does not have the strength of the youth in his body and vigor and naturally, he cannot enjoy the things like past. But more than that he has lost the freshness of mind and he remembers in the past his life was full of hope. Youth is the most beautiful time in a person’s life. We enjoy everything in our young time. So, Coleridge is sad that his best time in life has gone and he has lost hope for the future also. More than the loss of youth, Coleridge is sad and dejected from the loss of creativity. He was a great poet who could write many beautiful poems in the past, but he has lost his creativity. He felt that he was becoming more a metaphysical person instead of a poet. This also gave him sadness. Coleridge could not think that he would be separated from poetry, but life was difficult for him. He was failing to write poems like the past.

“Dejection: An Ode” is a philosophical poem, and it talks about some philosophical ideas. Coleridge gives his own opinion and philosophy about the role of nature in human life. Wordsworth used to think that nature was inseparable from human life and nature was alive. Wordsworth also felt that nature could hill a man in terms of sadness and depression. Coleridge stated the opposite idea in this poem and said that life is full of despair and nature cannot do anything for a man. Instead, nature only increased his sadness and nature reminded him of all the sadness of the past. Coleridge was a man of philosophy, and like any philosopher, he was good at stating abstract ideas. This poem is full of such ideas and often it may become difficult for the readers to understand the inner meaning of the statements that Coleridge was making.

If we want to understand the significance of this poem, we have to take into account of the personal background of S. T. Coleridge. He was a highly talented person, but at the same time, he was a failure in love and career. He was not born in a rich family and all through his life, he struggled against poverty. He was not a rich person and fighting for money took a lot of energy from his life. He also suffered a loss in love and although he had a good relationship with William Wordsworth, during the time he wrote this poem, his relationship with good friend William Wordsworth became bad. So, Coleridge was a failure in everything and by this poem, he expressed his sadness and frustration in life.

It was bad luck for S. T. Coleridge that he was not born in our age. Today, a highly educated and talented person like Coleridge at least would not have remained poor in a country like England. I cannot say whether he would have been successful in the matter of love, but surely he would not suffer from poverty. At that time, poets had almost no field to earn money. Newspaper was not an industry. There was no cinema or television. So, creative people like Coleridge had a very limited scope of income. Secondly, England was not a fully democratic country. Since he was not from an aristocratic background, he did not have too many connections.

Coleridge lost a lot in life, and the theme of loss is the central theme in “Dejection: An Ode” poem. However, I feel that this loss, in the end, helped him to write this immortal poem.

Use of nature in The Rime of the Ancient Mariner

We all know that the romantic age in English literature is mainly famous for the emphasis of all the poets on nature. There were five or six major poets in this age, and all of them wrote many poems directly or indirectly related to the theme of nature. It was William Wordsworth who put the most importance on the relationship between nature and human life, and he tried to show that nature is alive and is directly related to our life. Samuel Taylor Coleridge did not completely share the same view with his friend, but in his poem “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner”, we can find some strong relationship between nature and human life on various occasions.

According to Coleridge, nature was not so strong and deeply and directly connected to human life. However, we can perhaps find some interesting things in this respect in the poem. Coleridge wanted to portray supernatural events as very normal and natural.

A closer look at the poem “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” will perhaps tell us that nature is indeed related to human life. The mariner sets on a journey, and at first, he was not concerned about anything else but his own pleasure. Even when he saw the albatross, he did not like it at all and for no reason killed it. Then, we can find that nature is not dead but its own soul. The mariner just offended the soul of nature by killing the albatross.

Albatross is the symbol of innocence. It was really and purely an innocent creature of God. It was the first thing the sailors saw after a long time in the ocean. So, the sailors were very happy as they had some company at last. The albatross came regularly and brought delight and fun for the sailors.

Coleridge has perhaps also tried to show that nature and God are not separate things. God was angry with the ancient mariner when he killed the albatross. Then, God brought punishment for him, and after suffering from a long punishment, the ancient mariner was changed in his heart, and he could ask forgiveness from God. God forgave him only when he showed mercy and kindness to water snakes.

Coleridge has used symbolism in this poem that is sometimes related to nature. For example, the albatross is a symbol and many discussions have taken place among the critics about the use of symbols in this poem. I like to state that the albatross is the symbol of innocence and in a way the symbol of goodness. When we throw away innocence and goodness from our life, our life becomes painful and meaningless.

Coleridge has painted some beautiful imageries with words related to nature. While discussing the sea, albatross, water snakes and the water around the ship, Coleridge really used very beautiful examples of imagery.

I have already said that according to Coleridge, nature is not separate from human life. However, Coleridge has focused on another thing that personal experience of the person is also important. The ancient mariner had some experiences in nature and these experiences changed him and made him a totally different person. He learned some moral lessons from the events that took place on the ship. At first, he killed the albatross, and then he suffered punishment. While he was suffering from punishment, life became intolerable for him. However, he understood that showing kindness to the creatures of God and to natural objects is important indeed.

In our age, many people talk about environmental pollution and care for the environment. In a way, this poem of Coleridge is like a pioneering effort in modern literature to make people conscious about taking care of the environment. For this reason, anyone who believes in supporting the environmental causes around the world should read the poem “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner”.

Crime, punishment and redemption in The Rime of the Ancient Mariner

“The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” is the masterpiece poem of Samuel Taylor Coleridge. It is one of the greatest poems written in the Romantic Age in English literature, and this poem was included in the famous book titled Lyrical Ballads, which was published in 1798. Lyrical Ballads is considered to be a book that brought a new beginning to English poetry and most of the poems were contributed by Coleridge’s close friend William Wordsworth. However, poems like “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” showed that Coleridge was a great poet just like Wordsworth. Perhaps the main theme of this poem is crime, punishment and redemption. These three things make us think about human life, and they also make us feel about the journey of the mariner. 

Image Source

If we look at the crime of the mariner, it looks to be very simple to us. He killed a bird and the bird was harmless. In fact, the bird was not only harmless but also it was very friendly to the sailors. All the sailors were very happy to see the bird because, for many days, they had to pass a very isolated part of the ocean where they could not see anything but water.

So, the albatross was innocent and it brought happiness to the sailors. In real life, we kill many animals and birds, but most of the time, it is for eating. The sailor killed the bird without any reason and this was his crime. He brought the anger of God to other sailors also. There may be some questions that why the other sailors suffered because of the crime of the mariner.

In answer to this question, it has to be said that when the mariner killed the bird, he was alive, but other sailors died from thirst. The other sailors got free from their punishment, but the mariner suffered more because he was in a ghost ship where everyone was dead, but they became alive and this way, the ancient mariner suffered the most.

The punishment of the mariner was very severe. First of all, as I said earlier that he had to live alone in a ghost ship. There was water all around him in the sea, but he could not drink. So, he started suffering from thirst, and we know from our real experience that this kind of suffering is not enjoyable at all. In fact, thirst or having no water to drink is the most difficult condition that we have to face in life. We can go on a few days without eating, but spending even one day without drinking water is perhaps one of the worst kinds of punishments we can think of.

The ancient mariner suffered a lot and he was given a chance to redeem himself. He gradually realized his crime and he repentant and God gave him another chance. He saw some water snakes and he praised them from his heart. This shows that his heart has changed because earlier he killed an innocent bird for nothing. Now, he was happy, and he enjoyed the blessings of God by looking at the water snakes. His change in mentality moved God and God forgave him. At first, he was very cruel and merciless but then he realized the value of love, kindness and mercy.

“The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” is a great poem with a lot of moral lessons. Perhaps the most important moral lesson is that we should show kindness and love towards nature. We should try to follow a good way and we should try to be a good person. 

The Creative Faculty of Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Poets’ work is to write poems. They express their own feelings through poems and, at the same time, provide enjoyment to the people with their poems. Besides entertaining, poets also teach people ‘to think’, and on many occasions, they play the role of a teacher too. However, most of the poets do not talk a lot about poems or writing poems. William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge are an exception in this respect. Together they started the ‘Romantic Movement’ in English literature. So, it is expected that they would express their own thoughts and ideologies about poets and poems. Despite having similarities in their opinions about the Romantic Movement, there are many dissimilarities too. Though Wordsworth is credited as the central figure of the Romantic Movement, Coleridge’s contribution is no less. The main spirit of the Romantic Movement was to take the poem to nature and people.

Image Source

So naturally, the matter of nature would come first when we will discuss the ‘Creative Faculty of a Poet’. After reading Coleridge’s ‘Dejection: An Ode’ poem, readers may feel that the poet does not deny the importance of nature that much; rather wind and nature helped him to imagine. The poet expressed his imagination upon seeing windy air, wind and sky. So, it can be said that nature motivated and helped him to imagine. However, it is also true that the poet is in distress and so, the beauty of nature cannot inspire him totally to write a poem. Nature is beautiful, but as there is frustration and distress in his mind, the poet cannot enjoy that nature to the fullest.

This frustration and beauty have taken then life vigor out of the poet. When the poet was young, he had physical strength as well as mental happiness. However, now as he is living in distress, there is more frustration than happiness in him.

Coleridge reveals his own condition and says he cannot write a poem. It means he can no longer write a good new poem and cannot even complete the old ones. Because of this, there grew a poetic paralysis in him, and he is living with poetic paralysis. Nothing can be more saddening than this for a poet. If we look into the life of the poet, we could see that the poet’s mind, at that time, was stricken with frustration because he was not successful in his career. He had earned some fame as a poet, but he was not that famous at the time. Secondly, he was in a conflict with his close friend Wordsworth. Thirdly, he had never been successful in love and affection in his life. Above all, his time was not going well, and poverty was there as his constant companion as usual. Because of all these, there grew a kind of feeling of paralysis in him.

The basic theory of Wordsworth is that nature has an immense contribution to the flourishing of poetic feeling, and nature is very close to the poetic self. According to Coleridge, soul and individual creativity are much more important. Individual creativity and poetic intuition are even more important than nature. Poet’s poem could become more beautiful with individual creativity and enough practice. Coleridge’s opinion is exactly the opposite of Wordsworth’s from this point of view as well.

The creative faculty of a poet introduces him or her with a new horizon. A poet is a human being, just like another human being. But, with his creativity, he could present ordinary, but beautiful things to the people extraordinarily. Imaginary power is the main weapon for a poet. They can see something that others cannot.

With the help of imagination, a poet can rise above the thoughts of general people. He or she can go beyond human limitations and can make the poems invaluable to the people with his or her eternal touch. So, to Wordsworth, a poet is an important person to society and his or her creative faculty could only bring good to society.

To understand the ‘Dejection: An Ode’ poem, one must have very good knowledge about the background of Coleridge’s life. He could not become that successful in life and had to struggle against poverty until his death. Today, we know Coleridge as one of the immortal poets of English literature. However, he was not treated as an important person by many people during his lifetime. So, he could never enjoy the touch of success in his career, and likewise, fame or popularity was never bestowed in his fate. Still, after going through the ‘Dejection: An Ode’ poem, we can realize that Coleridge is one of the most important and biggest personalities in English literature.