the rime of the ancient mariner p. 422. form ballad –medieval form of poetry intended to be sung...
TRANSCRIPT
Form
• Ballad– Medieval form of poetry intended to be
sung– Narrative poem in short stanzas– Uses repetition of words and sounds
(alliteration and assonance) for dramatic effect
– Balladic effects enhance sense of spiritual stagnation/isolation
Form
• Seven-Part Structure– Seven—Biblical number of
completion
– Traces spiritual cycle of crime, punishment, redemption
– Mariner as Christ figure—bringing spiritual truth to community
Form
• Frame Narrative– Provides credibility through real-world
setting—wedding feast
– Provides credibility through “everyman” character—wedding guest
Form
• Frame Narrative– Provides credibility through real-world
setting—wedding feast– Provides credibility through
“everyman” character—wedding guest
– Introduces themes of central narrative—community vs. individualism/isolation
Central Narrative: Setting
• Community– Village and church
– Spiritual and physical communion left behind
– Individual ambition vs. community
Setting
• Return to Community and Broader World– Pilot and Pilot’s Boy—horrors of
human evil
– Hermit—personal expiation
– Tale told from “land to land”—human redemption, community
Characters/Creatures
• Albatross– Bird of good omen for sailors
– Rescues ship from isolation
– Symbolizes redemptive force of community
– Christ symbol—love and sacrifice
Characters/Creatures
• Why did the Mariner kill the Albatross?– Jealousy?– Selfish ambition/desire for
independence?– Defiance of God and community?– Irrational, destructive act representing
human capacity for evil
Characters/Creatures
• Ship’s Crew– Blame Mariner
– Blame Albatross
– Represent Mariner’s guilt, isolation—human guilt, isolation
Characters/Creatures
• Death and Life-In-Death– Sunset/Darkness—approaching
spiritual death
– Curse in dead crewmen’s eyes—guilt
– Life-In-Death—punishment for willful isolation
Characters/Creatures
• Water Snakes/Ocean Creatures– Mariner recognizes he is not alone
– Represent love & community of all living things
– Bring spiritual communion (blessing, prayer) and redemption
Characters/Creatures
• Angelic Spirits– Animate bodies of dead crewmen
– Return ship to community
– Light imagery—spiritual enlightenment
– Represent desire for community, recognition of unity with God’s creation