Why Is It So Important To The Ancient Mariner?

“Instead of the cross, the Albatross - About my neck was hung.” In this section, Coleridge utilises strong religious notions to denote the metaphorical importance of the dead albatross. When one looks deeper into this excerpt and the surrounding stanzas, they can see that there are several connections with tales from the bible, such crucifixion of Jesus Christ and the story of Cain and Abel to the somewhat exile of the Ancient Mariner. There are several instances that do not seem related to the blind eye, but once scrutinized, obviously shared connections. The dead albatross being hung “about his neck” shares great resemblance to the crown of thorns that Jesus was forced to wear as he approached his death. Wearing the dead albatross is only one of the relatable characteristics between these two accounts.

This punishment was for supposedly “preaching fallacies and indulging in blasphemy”, which led to his death. Complementary to the bible, the ancient mariner was coerced into wearing a symbol of punishment, in the form of the albatross. The burdens placed on the two men both had strong metaphorical connections, with each object representing a wrongdoing of the individual. In the case of the ancient mariner, his blunder was represented through shaming, forcing him to forever remember the harm he caused to the ship and the crew. Jesus was forced to wear a crown of thorns which satirized the message he had tried to convey. Mocking him with a crown of thorns was parodying the fact he claimed to be God and “King of Man”. Both Jesus and the Ancient Mariner were virtuous people that were trying to help the people that surrounded them, but that help was misinterpreted as hate and malice. Consequently, both were forced to bear an encumbrance that shamed them for their misconstrued