Rime Of The Ancient Mariner Comparative Essay

Whereas Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” written in 1798 is about the mariner’s forced exploration of unknown parts of the earth, director Ridley Scott’s latest film The Martian: Bring Him Home set in the 22nd century starring Matt Damon is about an accident that happened during an expedition to Mars. Likewise both pioneers experience hardships and survive to tell their tales. Both are testament to the resilience of men and the protagonists’ will to survive. The theme of both is similar that human endurance and the will to survive are strong and that might be enough to ensure the survival of the human race. The story of The Martian is about six astronauts’ missions to Mars. Unexpectedly, a storm rages. The astronauts have to leave the planet because the storm will surely destroy their spacecraft. When they are on the way to the spacecraft, the main character, Mark Watney is hit by a radio

After Watney’s crewmates know that he survives, they take a vote and decide to go back to Mars to fetch Watney. The story shows the theme of human compassion and the human instinct to help those in need. In the meantime Watney transforms a rocket into a thruster which allows him to be propelled out of Mar’s atmosphere so his crewmates can receive him into the spaceship. In the end, the world comes together to root for Watney’s safe return. For a while, wars and disputes are put aside when people of every nation wish and pray for the safe return of the astronauts. A minor theme of the film is that love and compassion is universal. Deep down inside, people of all nations want the best not only for themselves but for everyone, even their enemies. This shows the futility of wars and that differences among nations can be solved with compromise and