The Rime of the Ancient Mariner (Cyclopedia of Literary Places)
At a glance:
- Author: Samuel Taylor Coleridge
- First Published: 1798
- Type of Work: Poetry
- Type of Plot: Allegory
- Time of Work: Late medieval period
- Genres: Ghost story, Poetry, Sea story, Ballad
- Subjects: Supernatural, Superstition, Sin or Original sin, Storytelling, Storms, Ships, Sailing or sailors, Birds, Weddings, Middle Ages
- Locales: Oceans
Places Discussed
Kirk. Unnamed church at which the poem opens and closes. This church, as well as other sites to which the Mariner alludes—such as a lighthouse, a hill, and a harbor bay—are evidently located in the Mariner’s native country. (“Kirk” is an old and once commonly used word for church in the British Isles, especially in Scotland.) The Mariner comes to understand his place within the universe as one of many creatures that deserve honor and respect, and the church imputes a moral tone to these ideas. Indeed, the Mariner is not simply a relativist, believing...
[The entire page is 847 words long]
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