The Rime of the Ancient Marine
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner The Mariner is not in the hands of a merciful God because his agony always returns. He asks for forgiveness of his agony but still after he tells his tale the agony returns at random times. A merciful God would grant permanent mercy. For all, the Mariner has been through death and hardship of his crew because of the killing of the albatross. The thought of his crime is enough agony but the Mariner’s agony returns until he has to relive the tragedy of the killing of his crew by telling his tale to another person. The fact that the agony always returns is particularly horrible about the Mariner’s punishment because no matter how hard he tries or how much he prays his sin is carried along within him. The pain of his sin goes away right after he tells his tale but it returns shortly afterwards. The Mariner says that, after telling the Hermit his story, “Since then, at an uncertain hour that agony returns.” Since the first time the Mariner confessed his crime to the Hermit at an inconsistent hour God reminds the Mariner of the sin he has committed by piercing his heart with agonizing pain. He tells the Wedding Guest that, until he tells his story, “The heart within me burns.” This is God’s way of expressing his anger to the Mariner for the curse he put on his crew when he killed the Albatross. God makes sure that the Mariner has and will fell agony, that the agony will always return, and that the agony will return at an unsure hour each day which causes the Mariner to relive his tale and to live in agony for the rest of his life. The Mariner is granted relief from his agony by telling his tale which releases his agony for a short while. The Mariner is telling the Wedding Guest why he must continue to tell his tale, “Which forced me to begin my tale; And then it left me free.” God has granted him the power to tell his tale which sets him free for a short while.