Samuel Taylor Coleridge

-Coleridge was part of the “first wave” of Romantic poets.

-He was a close friend of William Wordsworth

-Together, they co-authored Lyrical Ballads (1798)

-Coleridge added lines to Wordsworth’s poetry, and Wordsworth came up with the idea for the albatross in “Rime of the Ancient Mariner”

-He wrote the essay Biographia Literaria, which outlined some of the central formulations of Romantic literary theory

-During the peak of his literary career, he was addicted to opium

“Rime of the Ancient Mariner”

Considered a literary ballad: a songlike poem that tells a story. It is written in imitation of the traditional folk ballad in that it blends the real with supernatural events.

“The Rime of the Ancient Mariner,” a ballad, is told as a frame story.

Frame story: a story told within a story. In other words, one story is told during the action of another story.

The inner stories usually act as an example to the other characters (it teaches them something).

The Mariner’s story teaches people a lesson.

“RAM” is a tale of crime, punishment, and redemption.

“RAM” was the first poem in the 1798 edition of Lyrical Ballads.

Coleridge added the marginal notes himself to later editions to downplay its archaic style (use of old words).

It was a

wondrous

COLD….

The

ALBATROSS

KILLING

the albatross…..

Water, water

EVERYWHERE

The game is done!

The dice have

been played…..

Each man cursed

the Mariner with

their eyes…..

The albatross

hangs from his

neck….

Lost at sea…..

The water-snakes

appear….

The Mariner

prays for them

because he

recognizes that

all creatures are

blessed.

Redemption

approaches….

The Mariner

is saved, but the

ship sinks…..

The Mariner must

tell his story

wherever he

goes…..