THE RIME OF ANCIENT MARINER Flashcards
(16 cards)
What is the structure of The Rime of the Ancient Mariner?
A narrative ballad in seven parts, using archaic language and marginal glosses.
How does Coleridge adapt the ballad form in this poem?
He varies stanza length, meter, and rhyme; omits regular refrains and uses rich poetic devices.
What are some key poetic devices in the poem?
Internal rhyme, alliteration, simile, personification, and archaic diction.
What is the central supernatural event in the poem?
The Mariner kills an albatross, triggering a curse and strange visions.
What happens immediately after the Mariner kills the albatross?
The wind stops, the ship is stranded, and the crew blames the Mariner, hanging the albatross around his neck.
Who are Death and Life-in-Death in the poem?
Supernatural figures on a ghost ship who decide the Mariner’s fate through a dice game.
What punishment does the Mariner receive?
He is cursed to live while his crew dies and must suffer and wander retelling his story.
What event marks the beginning of the Mariner’s redemption?
When he blesses the sea snakes, seeing beauty in them, the albatross falls from his neck.
What happens after the Mariner is redeemed?
He sleeps, the ship sails home with ghostly help, and he survives while the ship sinks.
What moral lesson does the poem teach?
Respect all of God’s creatures and love nature as part of divine creation.
How is the Mariner similar to an artist or poet?
He explores unknown, supernatural realms and returns to share his gained wisdom.
What does the wedding represent at the beginning of the poem?
Harmony between man and nature.
What is the symbolic meaning of the albatross?
It represents innocence, nature, and divine harmony.
Why does the Mariner continue to tell his story?
It is his penance and moral duty to share the consequences of disrespecting nature.
What is the meaning of “suspension of disbelief”?
The reader’s willingness to accept the supernatural elements as believable within the poetic world.
What effect does the poem aim to have on the reader, like the wedding guest?
To hypnotize and deeply move them with the tale’s moral and mystical power.
