Careless Consequences
Many people dislike nature, believing that it's unclean or uncivilized. These fallacies often come from an underexposure to nature, and are often refuted when it is forced upon the person holding these beliefs. The Ancient Mariner from this poem went through this ordeal, and emerged a much better person. The Rime of the Ancient Mariner is a poem that portrays a mariner's voyage around the world, and the lessons he learns from it. A supernatural theme is also present throughout the whole text, which gives it an eerie and surreal feel. Throughout the Ancient Mariner's, voyage he comes to several significant intersections. Throughout his voyage the Mariner learns the value of life, and that decisions he makes have severe consequences for everyone and everything around him.
The first significant intersection that the Mariner comes to in his journey is when he cruelly kills an albatross the crew befriended. The Mariner inhospitably kills a harmless bird of good omen without any instigation, disregarding any consequences and taking its life off an impulse. Coleridge writes, “'God save thee, ancient Mariner!/ From the fiends, that plague thee thus!-/ Why look'st thou so?' -With my cross-bow/ I shot the Albatross"(p. 7). The Wedding-Guest, who the Mariner is telling the story of his voyage to, exclaims when he sees the Mariner's troubled face. The Mariner is shown here feeling regret for his previous actions, proving that he definitely improved from when he recklessly killed the albatross. The next major intersection gives more evidence that the Mariner can change his ways, and shows how his actions had severe repercussions.
The Mariner realizes that any action he takes will affect the world around him, positively or negatively. The Mariner's inhospitable killing of the albatross has brought upon him bad luck, which causes the Mariner's ship to be caught in a rotting sea with no wind to propel the ship along. After several days of this, a ghost ship comes out of the horizon, with two figures on board. One of them is Life-In-Death, a zombie-like woman, and the other is Death himself. In this part of the test, Colridge writes, "Each turn'd his face with a ghastly pang,/ And cursed me with his eye./ Four times fifty living men/ (And I heard nor sigh nor groan),/ With heavy thump, a lifeless lump,/ They dropp'd down one by one." (p. 11). Every member of the Mariner's crew is slain effortlessly because of his careless actions, and just before their death, every member of the ship curses the Mariner for bringing this situation upon them. It was this event that shocked the Mariner out of his recklessness, and brought upon him state of depression. From here on, the Mariner will never act in the same way again. His actions brought upon the death of two hundred men, and he realizes that there's too much at stake to make uninformed and impulsive decisions.
The Mariner learns to love all forms of life, and reforms how he lives. While sailing back to his homeland by himself, he sees beautiful sea creatures, frolicking in the moonlight. He is more open to the beauty of nature, and the very same beings he was disgusted by at the beginning of the voyage, he now blesses for their elegance. "O happy living things! no tongue/ Their beauty might declare:/ A spring of love gushed from my heart,/ And I blessed them unaware."(p. 13). His sudden love for these creatures breaks the curse of the albatross, which then falls into the sea. The Mariner's malice for other creatures is gone, and he now appreciates all life.
Over the course of these three intersections, it's evident how the Mariner's demeanor drastically changes. His actions now are wise and less reckless, and he values nature and life more than ever before. In the first intersection the Mariner came upon, he mercilessly killed the albatross, which showed how little he valued nature. He then stumbled upon Death and Life-In-Death, who then killed the ship's entire crew because of the Mariner's recklessness. This event put the albatross' death in perspective, and the Mariner started to change his ways. Finally, as the Mariner sailed on alone, he saw beauty in the animals of the ocean, and blessed the creatures he despised before. It was through these significant encounters that the Mariner's life and worldview was completely reformed for the better. Even though the Mariner might not have the opportunity to teach you these lessons himself, you should still incorporate them in your life.
