Question- Provided a summary of Part-VII of the poem.

Answer -

The Hermit - The Hermit lived in the wood which shaped towards the sea. He loved to speak to the sailors who came from for off lands. He was a pious man and used to say his prayers in the morning and at noon, kneeling on a thick cushion made by the moss which covered the slump of the dead oak tree, completely hiding it from view.

When the skiff-boat came near, the ancient Mariner could hear them talking. One of them was saying that it was strange that they could no longer see the lights which had signalled to them when they were on land. The Hermit said that another strange thing was the fast that no reply had come to their shouts from anyone in the ship. He also noticed that the planks of the ship were crooked and its sails were as thin as leaves in the forest which floated on the surface of the stream. Also, the Pilot's boy remarked that the ship hed a friendly look and made him feel afraid. The Hermit assured him and asked him to row on.

The Sinking of the Mariner's Ship - The boat now drew closer to the ship. As it did so, a sound could be heard under the water. It grew louder and more dreedful and it seemed as if the whole bay was being rented with this sound. When it reached the ship it made it sink into the sea like a piece of lead. This sound was terrible and seemed to strike the sky as well as the ocean.

The ancient Mariner lay floating on the water like a dead body which has been in the water for a week. But, in the twinkling of an eye, he found him self in the Pilot's boat. The boat spun round and round in the whirlpool made by the sinking of the ship. And when the ancient Mariner tried to speak, the Pilot's boy shriked and fell down in a fit. The Hermit, at once, went down on his knees, lifted his eyes to heaven and prayed quietly.

The Ancient Mariner and the Hermit - Afterwords, the ancient Mariner took up the oars and began to raw. When the Pilot's boy noticed this, he went stack mad. He began to laugh out aloud like a madman and his eyes began to roll. Then, he cried that he had now seen the proof of the fact that the devil knows how to row a boat, for he was sure that the ancient Mariner whom they had picked up out of the sea was no other than the devil himself.

When they reached the Land, the Hermit stepped out of the boat but he seemed to have some difficulty in supporting himself on his fect. The ancient Mariner, now standing on the firm ground of his own country, earnestly pleaded with the Hermit to be shiven. The Hermit made a sign of the cross on his forehead and asked him to say which type of man he was.

The Agony of the Ancient Mariner - At this the body of the ancient Mariner suddenly underwent a convulsive agony. He poused out his strange tale into the ears of the Hermit. Since then this agony returns to him at irregular intervals and it is quietened only after he has narrated his tale of suffering to a suitable listener.

The ancient Mariner has now been endowed with strange miraculous powers of speech, because after that he has selected a suitable listener, he relates the story to him and the listance has no power to move away until he has heard the full story. He now moves from land to land, as silently as the night, telling his strange tale of suffering to people.

The Advice of the Ancient Mariner to the Wedding Guest - The ancient Mariner then advises the wedding guest that he should regard the love of God's creatures as the best form of prayer and worship. He himself thinks that the sounds of bells - summoning the people to the evening prayer - is sweeter than the sound of festivities going on at a wedding. He now likes to walk the church in company with other devout christians where they pray together to the Maker.

The Reaction of the Wedding Guest The Wedding-Guest is so powerfully affected by the story he has heard. He doesn't enter the door of the bridegroom's house, although he is now free to do so since the ancient Mariner has left. As he goes away, he feels like a person who has received a heavy blow which has taken away his senses.

And when he wakes up the next morning, he can see that the story of the ancient Mariner has worked to a great effect on him, because he feels that he has become both more serious and wiser than before.

Important Explanations

Reference - The above lines have been taken from the poem, "The Rime of The Ancient Mariner' by S.T. Coleridge.

Context - Here, the main character an ancient mariner stops one of the three people who are on their way to a wedding celebration and tells his woeful tale of sin, regret and penance.

Explanation - In the poem's first line, we meet the main character, an Ancient Mariner. He stops one of three people who are on their way to a wedding celebration. The Wedding guest tries to resist being stopped by the strange old man but he is held by his captivating eyes. He explains that he is on his way to the wedding place and that he is a close relative of the groom and the festivities have already begun. Still he Ancient Mariner takes his hand and begun his story. Although the Guest is reluctant, he is mesmerized by the old man. The Wedding Guest has no choice but to sit down on a rock to listen.

2.

Reference - Same as above

Context - Continuing with his tale of anguish pain, sorrow and repentance, the Ancient Mariner talks about the appearance of albatross and how that changed the course of his life.

Explanation - Finally, an Albatross emerged from the land of mist and the sailors considered it to be the sign of good luck as it gave an indication that there was some life around. They hailed it in the name of Christ and considered it to be a bird of good omen. The sailors fed the albatross and played with it. The Albatross also hovered around the ship. With the arrival of the albatross, a good South wind started to blow and the ice cracked making way for the ship. The mariner after this becomes hysterical and the wedding guest is dead terrified on seeing his pale face. Then, the mariner tells the wedding guest that he took his cross bow and killed the Albatross.

3.

Reference - Same as above

Context - Here the speaker elaborates about the adverse situations, he is made to face after killing the albatross.

Explanation - The ocean became a horrifying place; the water was covered with 'slimy' creatures at night seemed to change colour because of so many slimy creatures which appeared on the water at night. Some of the sailors dreamed that the spirit had followed them from the icy world and they all suffered from a thirst so terrible that they could not speak. The sailors blamed the Ancient Mariner for their woes and put the blame on him alone and as a constant reminder to the wrong he had done, the sailors hung the Albatross' dead carcass around his neck.

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