古舟子咏

The Rime of the Ancient Mariner

The poem tells of the mariner stopping a man who is on his way to a wedding ceremony so that the mariner can share his story. The Wedding-Guest's reaction turns from amusement to impatience to fear to fascination as the mariner's story progresses, as can be seen in the language style; Coleridge uses narrative techniques such as personification and repetition to create a sense of danger, the supernatural, or serenity, depending on the mood in different parts of the poem. The Rime is Coleridge's longest major poem.It is often considered a signal shift to modern poetry and the beginning of British Romantic literature.