Eerie Biblical Parallels in a Ghost Story // Emma Dalgety

"The Rime of the Ancient Mariner" upon first inspection seems like a good old-fashioned sea legend. It has references to curses (the ill-fated Albatross), ghosts and specters, and an undead sailor, but to top it off there are some strange, inexplicable parallels to the New Testament. Coleridge opens up the poem with mention to three wedding guests heading to a wedding feast, which appears to loosely echo the parable of the three virgins waiting with their lamps for the bridegroom to arrive. While this might be a coincidence, the ending suggests that something happened between the Mariner and the guest he stops, as the man "turns from the bridegroom's door" (621) and does not enter. Instead, the man "went on like one who hath been stunned / And is of sense forlorn: / A sadder and a wiser man" (622-624). 

Is the wedding guest "forlorn" of sense by not going in and feasting, or is this something deeper? The fact that the man is now "sadder and wiser" could set a different kind of parallel to Ecclesiastes, in which the Teacher says that everything is meaningless. The Mariner himself says that it is sweeter to pray and enjoy the company of one's family than it is to go feasting (605-610). Either way, these parallels are subtle, providing just enough to taunt the reader and make them wonder about what the Mariner is truly saying. 

Though these parallels both exist, which one is the most accurate interpretation? I wonder why Coleridge added them at all... 

I commented on Isabelle Ferguson and Justin Johnson‘s posts.


Comments

  1. Emma LandryOctober 19, 2021 at 12:37 AM

    This is a very interesting post! I had not considered these parallels. I was also reminded of Jonah's story. His rash and selfish actions also resulted in bad fortune at sea and caused bad travel conditions for those in his crew.
    -Emma Landry

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  2. Justin JOctober 19, 2021 at 8:14 AM

    Honestly, I was struggling my whole blog post to avoid going down the biblical parallels rabbit hole. It isn't that much of a stretch to make draw parallels between tyenAlbatross and Jesus. The albatross is an innocent life that came to deliver the sailor when he was in trouble, and he killed it. It was only when he accepted the value of the albatross and what it represents that he was freed from the weight of guilt. There are some other parallels that I could draw, but most of those are a bit of a stretch. I think this one, though, is directly intentionally alluded to in-text: "Instead of the cross, the Albatross about my neck was hung."

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