The Sublime

In The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Coleridge connects the spiritual/holy to the natural world to emphasise its connection to man. He suggests that the sublime is distanced from man by Society and its worldly pleasures leading man to abandon reverence for the otherworld. The Wedding Reception represents humankind's estrangement from the Holy even in the religious tradition of marriage.

The archaic definition of the word sublime is

“Elevate to a high degree of moral or spiritual purity or excellence” or

“That which is grand or noble in human nature or life; moral or spiritual excellence”

Both definitions refer to an achievement of moral and/or spiritual excellence, which can lead us to believe that Part IV in TROTAM alludes to the Ancient Mariner achieving sublimity through his realisation of the beauty in all of God’s creations—where the Mariner sees the beauty in the sea snakes- and his honest appreciation of these. This, in turn, rescinds the act of shooting the Albatross and frees the Mariner from his isolation. From this we can assume that the Mariner’s later penance is to teach people like his previous self to work towards achieving sublimity and to turn back from living a frivolous, unappreciative life. This brings us back to how the Wedding Guest reflects the early characterisation of the Mariner, leading to the Mariner stopping him outside the Wedding Feast to tell his story, as he is the one who most needs to hear it

Religious Allegory and the 'One Life'

The Rime of the Ancient Mariner (TROTAM) has many undeniable religious references and symbolism throughout the seven part ballad that has been used to categorise  it as a Christian Allegory. A key religious symbol in TROTAM is the infamous Albatross whose short life caused havoc in critics since the ballad's publication in 1798. The Albatross is widely considered to be a symbol for the son of God due to its description as a 'Christian soul' and supported by the comparison of Jesus to a bird in Christian symbolism. This symbol is developed as the Mariner is punished for shooting the Albatross which is suggested to be the anger of God for killing his son. The shape of the Albatross is also resemblant of the Christian cross which is commonly hung around the neck in the same way the Albatross is hung around the Mariner's neck. However, here the Albatross is suggested to symbolise the burden of sin as is is compared explicitly to the cross on which Christ was crucified. The fact that the Albatross replaces the Mariner's cross suggests that the Mariner is being abandoned by God for killing the Albatross. When the Albatross falls off there is the implication that the Mariner's neck is now bare which suggests that he has now no religious allegiance or placement; this idea is supported and developed as it suggested that the Mariner is being baptised in Part V when he is completely saturated and then again with the appearance of the Hermit, who's entrance suggests a religious conversion when the Mariner is saved by him. Around this point it is made explicit that the Mariner is has been re-born in 'seven days' which connects the story to Genesis in the Christian Bible; by telling his tale to the Hermit the Mariner gains a new life of penance, travelling with a didactic message which by telling relieves his agony. The key religious connection in TROTAM is its moral that the Mariner learns to his journey to respect God's creations which is the didactic message the Mariner has to teach to the Wedding Guest. In the end he tells him: 

'He prayeth best, who loveth best 

All things both great and small; 

For the dear God who loveth us, 

He made and loveth all' 

teaching the Wedding Guest to appreciate God's creations and God himself as he made us and loves us. This stanza also connects to the Christian religion in the line 'All things both great and small' which reflects the lyric in the popular Christian hymn 'All things bright and beautiful'.

TROTAM's connection to Coleridge's 'One Life' theory is evident in the Mariner having to find harmony with God's creations to earn redemption. In the stanza in Part IV 

'O happy living things! no tongue

Their beauty might declare:

A spring of love gushed from my heart,

And I blessed them unaware:

Sure my kind saint took pity on me,

And I blessed them unaware.'

The rhyme of rhythm in the stanza echoes a harmony and unity which reflects the concept of the ‘One Life’. The rhyming and rhythm is near perfect in its refection of each line, the syllables also being equal, creates the equal, tranquil rhythm. The stanza also narrates the Mariner finally seeing the beauty in sea snakes and their wildness, which again takes us back to the ‘One Life’ belief. The story of the Ancient Mariner very much reflects the ‘One Life’ belief therefore, in that the Mariner finds harmony and unity with his surrounding and God creations (reflecting opposite ideas finding harmony in the ‘One Life’s’ ideas) representing the belief that ‘humanity and nature are united’ in order to ‘find the divine within nature’. This appreciation earns the Mariner his redemption, as he has learnt from his barbarous act of  shooting the Albatross that all of these creatures are beautiful and have purpose in the world

Key Narrative Events

1. The Mariner holds to Wedding Guest against his will from the festivities and while the Wedding Guest protests rudely, the Mariner holds him 'with his glittering eye' and 'eftsoons' the Wedding Guest listens like 'a three years child' to the Mariner's tale. His story tells that he went on a voyage travelling south towards the South Pole until their ship became stuck in the ice. An Albatross appears at the same time they broke free of the ice and the Mariner shot him with his crossbow. 

1. The crew hang the dead Albatross around his neck, blaming him for killing the bird that brought them luck. The ship had turned and headed north and the crew had sporadic feelings at the Mariner, first angry for shooting the bird 'That made the breeze to blow' then grateful 'the bird That brought the fog and mist'. Continuing their journey the crew hit a period of no wind to propel the boat and are running low on supplies; they then blamed the Mariner -again- for shooting the Albatross. 

1. They dying crew encounter a phantom ship with two figures aboard. The Mariner is the first the see this, he paid the 'dear ransom' and bit his arm and 'sucked the blood' to call the ship to the crew's attention. Death and Life-in-Death are aboard the shipping playing dice to decide the crew's fate; Life-in-Death winds the Mariner and the crew's souls move on to Death leaving the Mariner alone to begin his transformation. 

1. After being isolated in his guilt and grief, the Mariner undergoes his transformation from describing nature as 'slimy things' to 'rich attire'; as the mariner sees the truly appreciates the beauty in nature and believes that all living things deserve respect, he earns his redemption and the Albatross falls from his neck. 

1. The Mariner faints as the Polar Spirit moves the ship, whilst the Mariner is unconscious the Polar Spirit and another spirit discuss the remaining penance the Mariner has yet to do. The voices depart as the real wind takes over moving the ship, with the spirit-inhabited and the Mariner manning it, towards the harbour. 

1. The spirits leave the crew's dead bodies this time forgiving the Mariner. As the ship nears the harbour another boat comes into sight with three people aboard; a pilot, a pilot's boy and a Hermit. The boat approaches the ship and a loud noise is heard from the sea and the Mariner's ship sinks. 

1. The Hermit rescues the Mariner and listens to the tale the Mariner is compelled to tell to relieve his agony and pain. He asks the Hermit for forgiveness and is given a new life of penance, to travel for eternity teaching the didactic message to the right person. 

1. The Mariner tells the Wedding Guest of this life-long penance and how he knows which person to stop each time by a look in their face. He teaches him the lesson that all of God's creatures should be respected and the Wedding Guest wakes up the next morn 'A sadder and wiser man'.

Romanticism

The Romantic period lasted from 1789 to 1837

First generation romantic poets included Blake, Wordsworth and (his best friend) Coleridge.

Romanticism featured many binary oppositions such as: Self vs. Society (could be interpreted a the Mariner vs. the Crew) and Rational vs. Irrational (Reality vs. Supernatural)

It featured a fascination with Liminal spaces, places on the edge or between two realms of existence and Metaphysics, concern with explaining the fundamental nature of being and the world. This links to how the Mariner is isolated in a liminal space as punishment.

It rejected impersonal and artificial feeling which lead to a disdain for Shakespeare's work and explains why characters who acted artificially or without feeling were often punished in their works (e.g. the Mariner)

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Romantic poets generally favoured the powers of nature over religion, placing greater importance on imagination; believing that it had the power -when inspired by nature- to overcome human suffering. This meant that rather than being escapist, work was often rooted in human suffering in order to stress that nature and its influence over imagination had the power to relieve human pain. This connects to how the Mariner has to find beauty in nature to be redeemed and how he was punished for not appreciating nature (killing the Albatross).

It placed great importance on the individual, taking interest in the common man and childhood and the strong sense, emotions and feelings felt by the individual. 

It placed interest in overreaches in mythology such as Icarus and Prometheus and their punishment, connecting to the character of the Mariner and how he was punished for shooting the Albatross.

The Ballad form was popular in Romanticism perhaps because of the lives of Balladeers who traveled alone telling stories and singing songs. These would have interested them because of their absorbation in the individual and how the songs they would sing would commonly be about nature, love, tragedy, unrequited love and legends. Coleridge's ancient Mariner could be interpreted as a kind of balladeer.

The Romantics embraced feelings of sincerity, spontaneity and originality which links to how the Mariner earns his redemption by his sincere and spontaneous feelings of appreciation and awe at nature/God's creations.

Romanticism in The Rime of the Ancient Mariner

The Supernatural Element

Romantic poets like Coleridge gave more importance to describing the supernatural world than realistic descriptions of everyday life. These supernatural elements are evident in Coleridge's descriptions of the supernatural and mystical experiences of the ancient Mariner in the 'skeleton' ship, 'Life-in-Death', 'seraph bands' etc. 

Love of Nature

Romantic poets were lovers of nature and delighted in describing the glories of nature. A common theme in Romantic works is the power of the natural world which is frequently displayed in TROTAM when the Mariner and/or the crew are at the mercy of the power of nature (the weather) in:

'And now the storm-blast came, and he

Was tyrannous and strong:

He struck with his o'ertaking wings,

And chased us south along'

The Mariner is definitely in awe of nature (a key characteristic of Romanticism) most especially when he finds comfort in his new found beauty and appreciation of God's creations in Part IV when he is feeling terrified and alone;

'But where the ship's huge shadow lay,
The charméd water burnt away
A still and awful red.'

Poetic form

Coleridge's quatrain with rhymes a b c b in most parts of the poem with variation in the number of lines in some stanzas and also the rhyme scheme connects to Romanticism and differs from the neo classical age using only one verse form;

'Day after day, day after day,

We stuck, nor breath nor motion;

As idle as a painted ship

Upon a painted ocean

Water, water, every where

And all the boards did shrink,

Water, water, every where

Nor any drop to drink.'

In contrast to,

'The helmsman steered, the ship moved on:

Yet never a breeze up blew;

The mariners all 'gan work the ropes,

Where they were wont to do;

They raised their limbs like lifeless tools-

We were a gastly crew.'

Voice and Perspective

Part I

Third Person Omniscient (the gloss)

• Establishes the dual narrative framing
• Distant and uninvolved in the story (like the reader)
• Distances reader from events 
• Gives private thoughts and opinions 
• Builds suspense
• Archaic language gives sense of 'old story'

The Wedding Guest 

• Intradiegetic narrator
• Present for readers to relate to
• Gives reality to supernatural events
• Makes supernatural events seem real to the reader

The Mariner

• Homodiegetic narrator
• Gives actions, details and reasons
• Mirrors the 'balladeer' as travels around from place to place telling a story
• Sometimes told through Third Person Limited 

Part II

Third Person Omniscient

• Gives insight and opinion
• 'inhospitably' and 'pious' foreshadow how the Mariner is punished and brings Christian symbolism. 

The Wedding Guest

• Stays silent signifying how he is 'spell-bound' and listening like 'a three years child' and how the Mariner is absorbed in his story/memories

The Mariner

• Absence of third voice signifies how he is being abandoned and condemned for shooting the Albatross

Part III

Third Person Omniscient

• 'dear ransom' foreshadows how the Mariner will pay price/will be punished
• Makes supernatural world explicit in questioning 'onward without wind or tide?'

The Mariner

• Told largely in his perspective signifying how he is being left alone while the crew move on

Life-in-Death

• Dice game represents the randomness that decides the fate of the Mariner and crew
• Signifies how it is out of the Mariner's control
• The internal rhyme represents the flippancy with which their fate is decided
• Represents how the Mariner will never fully recover and live a 'dead' life

Part IV

Third Person Omniscient

• Provides explanation
• Reminds of archaic language
• Relates the Mariner's suffering as repentance (religious in 'penance')

The Wedding Guest

• Makes the ballad seem more realistic
• Breaks the tension
• Contrasts real world with the supernatural
• Intradiegetic narrator
• Uses parallel phrasing to emphasise the supernatural features of the Mariner
• 'I fear thee' links to the Mariner's fear of Life-in-Death in the previous part

The Mariner

• Homodiegetic narrator
• Repetition of 'alone' and the limited range of vocabulary reflects barren existence emphasises isolation as punishment
• Stanza 66 echoes the harmony and unity in the 'one life' in its near perfect rhyme and rhythm and also the syllables being equal
• Repetition of 'blessed them unaware' emphasises the importance of his appreciation being honest

Part V

The Wedding Guest

• Interrupts the story
• Keeps presence of intradiegetic narrator
• Repetition of 'I fear thee'

The Mariner

• Sibilance creates smooth, peaceful, mellifluous sound which reflects the happiness and relief of the Mariner by being redeemed

The Spirits

• Confirms that a specific spirit is punishing the Mariner for betraying the bird that loved him
• Foreshadows the punishment
• Suggests a chain of loss and that man disrupts the sequence
• Explains the want for revenge

Part VI

Two New Voices

• Offers narrative and stylistic break
• The speech is structured like that of a play script
• Omniscient
• Presentation leads a didactic narratorial feel to their words
• Presented like guests -much like the Wedding Guest- but they leave due to some kind of appointment, again like the Wedding Guest but they are not compelled to hear the Mariner's story
• Lots of questions suggest concern perhaps that the normal laws of nature are not working

The Mariner

• The two new voices abandon him - isolation
• Seeing the Hermit, Pilot and Pilot's boy represents welcoming back
• View of the Hermit represents baptism - wash away sins/guilt

Part VII

Third Person Limited Returns

• Characterises Hermit
• Suggests that a Religious conversion is taking place

The Hermit

• Brings in sense of redemption
• The Hermit's position in the woods suggests that he could have seen the Mariner's crime
• Represents oneness with God and nature
• Suggests the importance of religion
• Rhythm of stanza 121 can interpret that nature and God are intertwined as all nature is God’s creation
• Serves as a foil to the other characters

The Wedding Guest

• Doesn't realise the importance of the wedding as being a holy communion
• The Mariner teaches him that a wedding is more than just a feast, but a spiritual union, which can be linked to the spiritual union of nature and man
• The reader gets a sense of things moving in full circle as the story comes back to the Wedding Guest (represents nature as having its own pattern- the cycle of life
• Shown to have learnt the moral to love all of God's creations which therefore teaches the Reader this lesson