Selections from Five English Poets Part 14

[14.] Shroud. The shrouds are sets of ropes which serve as stays for the masts of a vessel.

[15.] Vespers nine, _i.e._ nine evenings. _Vesper_ and _Hesperus_ are names given to the evening star, especially to the planet Venus when it appears in the west soon after sunset. Consult the dictionary for other meanings of the word _vesper_.

[16.] Whiles, meanwhile.

[17.] The Sun now rose upon the right. This indicates that the vessel had turned about and was going northward. The poet says in his notes that she soon entered the Pacific Ocean.

[18.] Nor dim nor red, etc. The sun now rose clear and bright, and not dim or red, as when seen through mist or fog; and the sailors justified the Mariner, thinking that by his act the fog had been dispersed.

Uprist means _uprose_.

[19.] The furrow followed free, i.e. the track, or wake, left by the ship appeared to be gladly following her.

[20.] That silent sea. The vessel had reached the equator.

[21.] Death-fires. There is a superst.i.tion that death is sometimes foreshadowed by death-fires or fetch-lights. In this instance the fires presaged the death of the sailors.

[22.] The spirit that plagued us so. This was "the lonesome spirit from the south pole," who was seeking revenge for the death of the albatross.

[23.] I wist, I knew.

[24.] Agape, with mouths open as though surprised.

[25.] Gramercy (from the French _grand-merci_), an exclamation formerly used to denote thankfulness with surprise.

[26.] To work us weal, to do us good.

[27.] Straight, straightway, immediately.

[28.] The Sun was flecked with bars. The frame of the skeleton ship showed clearly against the setting sun as she pa.s.sed before it.

[29.] Heaven's Mother, the Virgin Mary.

[30.] Gossameres, gossamers, cobwebs.

[31.] The Nightmare Life-in-Death. In this strange being the poet personifies the state of a person who lives, as it were, in the shadow of death. The condition called "nightmare" was formerly believed to be caused by the witch Nightmare, who oppressed people during sleep.

[32.] At one stride comes the dark. This is a wonderful picture of the sudden fall of night near the equator, where there is no twilight.

[33.] Clomb, climbed; an old form.

[34.] The horned moon, etc. Coleridge says in a note: "It is a common superst.i.tion among sailors that something evil is about to happen whenever a star dogs the moon."

[35.] I fear thee. The wedding guest imagined that the Mariner died with the rest of the sailors and that he was talking with a ghost.

[36.] And thou art long, etc. This line and the line following were written by Wordsworth.

[37.] For the sky, etc. This line, with its repet.i.tions, and the extra length of the stanza, tend to make one feel the load that was pressing upon the Mariner.

[38.] Bemocked the sultry main, mocked the sultry ocean.

[39.] They moved, etc. This description is true of fish of all kinds on a dark night when there is a great deal of phosphorus in the water.

[40.] Silly, frail.

[41.] Dank, damp, wet; seldom used in prose.

[42.] Sheen, bright, glittering.

[43.] Wan, pale.

[44.] Gan work, did work, or began to work.

[45.] Sometimes a-dropping, etc. Notice what a pleasant interlude is made by this stanza and the three which follow.

[46.] Jargoning, confused sounds.

[47.] I fell down in a swound. The poet explains that the vessel, driven by angelic power, sped on with extreme rapidity, and that the Mariner was put into a trance because he could not have endured the motion.

[48.] Two voices in the air. These were the voices of spirits who felt the wrong that had been done to the Spirit of the South Pole by the killing of the albatross.

[49.] Honey-dew, a sweet substance found in small drops on the leaves of trees and plants.

[50.] If he may know, so that he may know.

[51.] For she guides him, etc., _i.e._ whether smooth or rough, the ocean is always guided by the moon.

[52.] Charnel-dungeon, a vault where the bones of the dead are kept.

[53.] Countree, country; this form of the word occurs frequently in old ballads.

[54.] Harbor bar, a bank of sand or other matter at the mouth of a harbor, which obstructs navigation.

[55.] The harbor bay, etc. Notice the effect of quietness produced by this line and the eight which follow.

[56.] Holy rood, holy cross.

[57.] Impart, give forth, send forth.

[58.] Shrieve, shrive, hear confession and p.r.o.nounce absolution. In the earlier ages of the Christian Church it was not uncommon for men to live as hermits, devoting themselves to fasting, penance, and prayer.

[59.] Trow (p.r.o.nounced _tro_), think.

[60.] Ivy-tod, ivy-bush.

[61.] Afeared, afraid; an old form.

[62.] The Hermit crossed his brow. He did this to ward off evil, for he feared that the Mariner was a wicked spirit in human form.

[63.] Vesper bell, a bell calling to evening prayer. See note on l. 76.