Fate In The Rime Of The Ancient Mariner

In “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner”, a poem by Samuel Taylor Coleridge, a sailor probes the dynamics of his relationship with God through the medium of nature. At the beginning of the poem, the mariner and his crew face a storm that is soon remedied by the arrival of an albatross that brings with it the gift of wind. However, reflecting the destruction and sin of human nature, the mariner soon shoots the albatross with a crossbow, a grave mistake that brings with it misfortune. Throughout his sea voyage, the mariner must reconcile himself with God, and finds that only through penance he is able to reverse his fate. The relationship between man and God is one of positive reinforcement. At the beginning of the poem, the mariner shows little respect for nature, and thus for God’s creations. He kills the albatross on impulse and thus destroys one of God’s creations. The mariner also views only his own kind, human beings with high regard, and shows little to no respect for other creatures. He mourns the death of his fellow sailors but cannot fathom why God spared the lives of lesser beings, “The many men, so beautiful! / And they all dead did lie: /
In order to keep the mariner in line, God does not let the memory of the albatross slip away completely. In order to keep the pain of his memories away, and so that God will “shrieve my soul, he’ll wash away / The Albatross’s blood”(lines 512-513), the mariner must pay penance. The mariner still suffers for his sins, as he is reminded of the hot days that followed his murder of the albatross with the imagery of a burning heart, “That agony returns: / And till my ghastly tale is told, / This heart within me burns”(lines 583-585). The mariner, however, is able to ease his pain by preaching and thus reinforcing the lesson that he learned out on the open sea, the lesson of appreciation and respect for