“IN YOUR OPINION, HOW WERE THE POEMS OF SAMUEL TAYLOR COLERIDGE SHAPED BY THE SCIENTIFIC, PHILOSOPHIC, RELIGIOUS AND ECONOMIC PARADIGMS OF THE 18TH AND 19TH CENTURIES?”
Romanticism, the literary movement that surfaced in the late 18th century celebrated life and embraced ideas of the deep emotions felt by individuals whilst at the same time promoting an appreciation of nature and placing an emphasis on the power of imagination. Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s inspiring and alluring pieces ‘Kubla Khan,’ ‘The Rime of the Ancient Mariner,’ ‘Frost at Midnight’ and ‘This Lime-Tree Bower My Prison’ are collective products of the religious, scientific, philosophical and economic paradigms of the 18th and 19th centuries where emotions of freedom, repression, innocence and rebellion were central. The 18th and 19th centuries, renowned for the Romantic revolution that spread across Europe and into America saw the replacing of God amongst civilisation and the publicizing of the beauty of the natural.
The desire to escape and recreate an isolated civilisation where man is free in nature was an ideal carried cautiously throughout the Romantic era and acted as a foreground for Romantic writers. This desire is a direct reflection of the growing separation from God that surfaced once Romantic advocates began to question the legitimacy of God and the professions of the bible. Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s spiritually awakening ‘Kubla Khan’ is prone to religious interpretation in the way it repeatedly refers to ‘Alph, the sacred river’ and its rhythmical depiction of ‘a miracle of rare device,/ A sunny pleasure-dome with caves of ice!’ The idea of a vision within a vision which is prominent throughout the poem may also represent the disconnection from God as Romantics began to take responsibility for their movements, no longer putting their faith in God. This movement was heavily publicised and was supported by fellow writer Percy Bysshe Shelley who mass produced a flyer that promoted atheism and questioned the ‘nonsense’ that surrounded God, which saw him expelled from Oxford University in 1811. Coleridge continues to promotes spirituality and self exploration through his developed use of rhyme in his plea ‘Could I revive within me/ Her symphony song,/ To such a deep delight ‘twould win me,’ as he grows desperate to remember the foundation to his vision. Kubla Khan replicates the religious paradigm of the 18th century and explores the moral debate which saw Romantic artists and writers fight for religious separation in their belief that God was no longer central to existence. Samuel Taylor Coleridge was heavily influenced by this driving force and turned to poetry to express his strong emotions towards God, spirituality and freedom in nature.
Ignorance towards the scientific paradigm of the 18th century further developed the Romantic valuing of imagination, spiritualism and individualism. The Romantics thrived on ideals of the sublime and often disregarded the apparent reality of civilisation. Coleridge’s complexly intriguing ‘The Rime of the Ancient Mariner’ focuses on an idealistic image of ‘a greater and better world’ where the desired utopian dominance and relation between man and nature prevails. The novel-like piece follows the recount of a sailor who interrupts a gentleman on his way to a wedding to tell the harrowing tale of his unearthly voyage, the wedding guests begins to listen ‘like a three years’ child,’ but Coleridge’s constant switching between third and first person narrative emphasises the irritation that grows within the interrupted wedding guest. ‘The Rime of the Ancient Mariner’ subjectively represses the scientific progress that was emerging during the Romantic Era where scientists suggested the world ran like clockwork, mechanical in every form. This interpretation stems heavily from the work of Sir Isaac Newton who published his series of scientific laws that identified the relationships between force and acceleration. Coleridge, in part III of the poem is pushing to resurface the ideals of imagination and rhythmically confesses ‘Four time fifty living men... With heavy thump, a lifeless lump,/ They dropped down one by one.’ Here the guest grows fearful and anxious, yearning to make sense of the sailor’s predicament, reflecting the scientific paradigm where society was growing dependant on scientific development and unfortunately separating from the ideals of imagination. Coleridge is attempting to persuade the guest to believe the unbelievable, provoking abstract thinking. The following image created in ‘I fear thee, ancient Mariner!/I fear thy skinny hand!’ develops the eerie tone of the poem and sees the guest begin to question the sincerity behind the Mariner’s claims. The Mariner continues to depict an apparent curse he has been ridden with as he uses hyperbole and grotesque imagery to recount the horror of his physical and spiritual journey where ‘a thousand thousand slimy things/ Lived on; and so did I.’ Conclusively, Coleridge is recognizing the growing separation between the individual and spirituality a theme which is persistent across his collection of works in reinforcing his belief that spirituality and imagination are key in creating his desired utopian world. Simultaneously, signs of repression and vulnerability surfaced in rebut to the scientific progressions and revelations of the 18th century, specifically those of Sir Isaac Newton who redefined the way scientists viewed the relation between human force and non-human response, which saw the emerging of despair and questioning of authenticity amongst the Romantics.
Romantics longed in raising a generation where childhood innocence was preserved and children were able to grow within nature. Samuel Taylor Coleridge in his captivating poem ‘Frost at Midnight’ is routinely conforming to the philosophic ways of thinking during the Romantic Era. Romantics believed that man is his natural was good as they began to promote feelings over thoughts. The referencing and personification of the ember in the poem is potentially representative of the human spirit and provokes abstract thinking regarding human life and existence throughout the poem. Whilst the central meaning to the poem remains ambiguous, it’s apparent that the piece follows a personal journey to which he is addressing a child, most probably his own. Coleridge uses child-like references to create a sense of innocence. When speaking of the subject of his poem he describes ‘Whose puny flaps...make a toy of Thought’ in the lead up to his direct ‘dear Babe, that sleepest cradled by my side.’ Coleridge’s capitalisation of the word ’Thought’ is significant in depicting the prominence it served to Romantics, in particular French Philosopher Denis Diderot. Diderot was arrested for publishing his encyclopaedia that expressed thoughts of ‘thinking differently.’ Coleridge’s stunning poem reflects this was of thinking as he introduces his valuing of nature through the use of natural imagery. He writes, ‘For I was reared/In the great city, pent ‘mid cloisters dim,/And saw nought lovely but the sky and stars./But thou, my babe! Shalt wander like a breeze/By lakes and sandy shores, beneath the crags/Of ancient mountain, and beneath the clouds,’ Here, Coleridge is capturing the innocence of childhood and promising the child of the poem freedom in nature as he grows. Samuel Taylor Coleridge was heavily influenced by the driving force of valuing innocence in connection with nature that was carried by the Romantics of the 18th century.
Adoration towards nature in its natural state is both cleansing and replenishing. The recognition of this natural sublime inspires the individual to reach his sense of self. Romantics despised the economic changes that rose during their time including the Industrialisation movement and worked solemnly to promote natures beauty. This anguish fuelled Coleridge as he wrote his poem ‘This Lime-Tree Bower My Prison’ which rebels against the manifestation of Industrialisation into European civilisation whilst reinforcing the beauty of nature. Industrialisation was stimulated by economic refinements that were introduced by key influencers including Napoleon Bonaparte, leader of the French who made legislature amendments that effectively increased trade and promoted economic organisation in 1815. Napoleons legacy became known as the Napoleonic Code and was fundamental in the creation of an economically stimulated civilisation to which Romantics were in severe rebut. In Coleridge’s poem he acts as the voice to a voyager who is secluded to his Lime Tree after an injury prevented him from travelling. Coleridge’s preservationist attitude towards nature that is carried throughout the poem provides an idealistic image which encourages audiences to recognise the simplistic beauty of nature in hopes they are able to disregard the rising Industrialisation movement. Coleridge’s use of repetition in description allows for emphasis on the ‘roaring dell of which I told;/ the roaring dell, o’erwooded, narrow, deep’ and the ‘poor yellow leaves/ ne’er tremble in the gale, yet tremble still’ which strengthens his argument in relation to nature and its magnificence. Coleridge creates a gentle and peaceful mood as he describes ‘This little lime-tree bower, have I not mark’d/ Much that has sooth’d me’ to which further supports his favouritism of nature. Coleridge uses personification to present the central idea of the poem which defines the Romantic rebuttal and reads ‘Henceforth I shall know/ That Nature ne’er deserts the wise and pure.’ The use of this poetic thesis in Coleridge’s poem creates a sense of protection for audiences as Romantics protest against Industrialisation. Ultimately, the hankering for natural admiration was the source of inspiration for Coleridge during the Romantic era. This almost exaggerated admiration stems directly from the discontent Romantics felt to the uprising economic world where poetry acted as an escape and means of reflection.
Romantic advocates fought to promote their core values to which include freedom, innocence and the adoration of nature. Romantics showed signs of rebellion and discontent towards the scientific and economic revelations of the 18th and 19th centuries where Industrialisation began to flourish and scientist began to examine the human body the same way Romantics uncovered the human mind. These deep and passionate emotions that stemmed acted as foundation for Romantic writing. The scientific, religious, philosophic and economic paradigms of the Romantic Era without doubt shaped the way in which the Romantics crafted their works as they sparked such powerful emotions. Reflections of these paradigms are seen in Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s ‘Kubla Khan,’ ‘Frost at Midnight,’ ‘The Rime of the Ancient Mariner’ and ‘This Lime-Tree Bower My Prison.’ Coleridge is artistically expressing his deepest personal feelings and emotions as his belief that ‘language is the armony of the human mind’ persuaded him to use poetry as ultimate outlet.