In order for the Mariner to be forgiven of this sin he must first admit his guilt. In lines 91 through 96 he does so by saying, “And I had done a hellish thing,And it would work ‘em woe:For all averred, I had killed the birdThat made the breeze to blow.Ah wretch! said they, the bird to slay, That made the breeze to blow!”It is this admission of guilt that allows the process of forgiveness for the Mariner to begin. It also allows the Albatross to become a reminder of the Mariner’s sin, a representation of Christ’s suffering, and a symbol of the Christian cross. In lines 40 and 41 it says, “Instead of the cross, the Albatross About my neck was hung.”The next symbolic theme in “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” is that of retribution. In lines 143-146 Coleridge illustrates a time of draught for the sailors on the voyage. Without any water to drink they are suffering. This symbolizes the spiritual draught that humans face in Christianity. Without the love for Christ humans are thirsting for spiritual enlightenment and forgiveness--without which they suffer. Also as a symbol for retribution in the poem is the appearance of Life in Death. In Christianity, in order to experience everlasting life in heaven, humans must succumb to death first. Coleridge uses supernatural events to show real life situations in his poem. The real life situation of life in death in Christianity is symbolized as a supernatural being in in lines 188-193 of the poem. This symbolism of Life-in-Death is expressed through personification in saying, “Her lips were red, her looks were free,Her locks were yellow as gold:Her skin was as white as leprosy,The Night-mare Life-in-Death was she,Who thicks man’s blood with cold.”The final symbolic theme in Coleridge’s “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” is that of rebirth. This rebirth is seen in the Mariner’s realization t...
