The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Essay Example

The poem is all about human conduct and behavior. This is because the characters in the poem are responding to different situations differently. The wedding guest in guest in part IV, 230 fears that the spirit is talking to him “I fear thee, ancient mariner…” again spirits is mentioned the ancient mariner is like a ghost and the thoughts of the persona are wild in spirit world. This applies to many people when they start taking their minds into the spirit world.

The wedding is mentioned in part I stanza 5 where the writer mentions of the bridegroom door opened wide, the guests have met and the feast is set “The Bridegroom’s doors are opened wide…”. Mariner then meets the tree gallants who were invited to the wedding feast but he manages to detain one. The positioning of the wedding in the poem affects the readers response to it in that, he is informed what the real story is before he reads it .This makes him to have a preconceived mind about the whole poem which may hinder him from learning the real themes.

Part IV of the poem presents different changing stated. The wedding guest fears that the spirit is speaking to him but ancient Mariner assures him that the he lives and tells him of his horrible story of penance “Seven days, seven nights, I saw that curse, And yet I could not die…”. He despises the creatures as calm which were dead but again he envied that the beautiful creatures could live, “For the sky and the sea, and the sea and the sky, Lay like a load on my weary eye, And the dead were at my feet…”. The part moves from death, to life into spirit world. Considering the current circumstances, these changes are not believable.

Mariner’s penance was that of accepting Jesus Christ’s death on the cross. The penance that Mariner has left is that one of asking for forgiveness for the wrongs he has done. The spirits demand that he does more penance even if he had given. This is illustrated in line 408 “The man hath penance done, And penance more will do.” In my opinion, the man ought not to give penance any more. This is simply because he had suffered enough in spiritual world.

The wedding guest goes sad after hearing the agonizing story of Mariner. He pities him that he had suffered alone and could see death of beautiful men who could not live again with him. More so the way he suffered in the wilderness alone. The wedding guest grows wiser given that he learns that his conducts counts after he dies. He will not risk doing badly but to love and keep the creation of God. Other features that hear the stories are spirits, birds, snakes and the other guests.

Of course the use of figurative language in this Ballard is vivid. A good example of simile used is “Red as a rose is she”. This is meant to bring out the idea that the Bride was very beautiful! Another figurative language used is metaphor e.g. “Whose beard with age is hoar”. Similarly use of personification style can be seen in part II “The Sun now rose upon the right: Out of the sea came he…” Finally use of alliteration has been widely used in this poem. It is meant to bring out the musicality of the poem. A good example is seen in stanza 610:

Farewell, farewell! but this I tell 
To thee, thou Wedding Guest!
He prayeth well, who loveth well 
Both man and bird and beast.