Biblical Symbolism In Rime of the Ancient Mariner :: Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Samuel Taylor Coleridges poetry The Rime of the superannuated diddlyshit, written in 1797, has been widely discussed end-to-end literary history. Although critics have put in up with many different interpretations of this poem, one idea that has remained prevalent throughout these discussions is the apparent religious symbolisation present throughout this poem. The Ancient diddley contains natural, gothic, and biblical symbolism however, the religious and natural symbolism, which coincide with one a nonher, institute the most important roles in this poem (Piper 43). It is apocalyptic and natural symbolism that dominates the core of this poem (43). The biblical symbolism found in this poem mainly reflects the apocalypse, as it deals with the Mariners revelation that good will triumph everyw here(predicate) evil, andhis acceptance of all nature as Gods creation. It is impossible to believe that Coleridge was not thinking of the mysterious divagate that blows on the Mariner, w ithout any awareness of the wind as a Biblical symbol of the Holy Spirit. Coleridge could also not associate the murder of the albatross with the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. The reader is told that the arctic Spirit loved the bird that loved the man who shot him with his bow. It is indeterminate that someone with Coleridges Christian background and faith could fail to see here an analogy with God who loved his son who loved the men that killed him. other example of symbolism is the fact that the albatross is hung around the Mariners neck like a crucifix. Event the cross in cross-bow hints at the murder of Jesus, which logically paces the albatross as a symbol for Christ. It is thought that Coleridge deliberately created these symbols and images with Christian meaning in mind. The apocalypse is heavily reflected upon throughout this poem as Coleridge combined the vivid colors, the ocean, and the death fires of The Ancient Mariner with the terror and starkness of the days of wra th in the apocalypse. The section of the poem after the Mariner kills the Albatross is a description of the emptiness and desolation that the Mariners experience, and the curse that is oer the ship. This section of the poem has tremendous correspondence to the apocalyptic story. The language and number in this part of the poem represent the images and words, which have traditionally expound the wrath of God and the guilt of man in Christian terms. Its is at this point in the poem that the Mariner feels guilty for having killed the Albatross and for the deaths of his shipmates.