The Rime of the Ancient Mariner

By Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Words from the achiever

“I read a lot. I love poetry. The kind of poetry that I love was narrative poetry. I love Coleridge, like “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner.” When I was 12 years old, I knew verbatim every line of “Horatius” by Lord Macaulay, which stretches to about 50 pages. Stuff like Tennyson, “Lochinvar.” All of these things. When other kids were running out into the fields and playing Cowboys and Indians, I was Horatius keeping the bridge, and Lochinvar riding down the hill with my wooden sword. To say that I had delusions of grandeur is putting it mildly. I drew so much, I drew so much from narrative poetry. I loved it, because I loved the flow of it, I loved what it said. So it was full of blood and guts, and romance, and heart and soul. And there was something that lived and breathed in it.”

About the book

An experimental edition of Coleridge’s classic narrative poem, including the poet’s many alternate drafts and revisions.