The Rime of the Ancient Mariner – Comprehension Questions

PART II

  1. What direction does the ship sail?
  2. How do the sailors first react to the Mariner’s killing of the Albatross?
  3. How do the sailors next react to the Mariner’s killing of the Albatross?
  4. How does the weather change shortly after the Mariner begins Part II?
  5. Why does the Mariner say “water, water everywhere nor any drop to drink”?
  6. What view does the Mariner take towards the living things in the ocean?
  7. What supernatural elements are mentioned towards the end of this passage?
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    2 –
  8. What do the sailors do with the Albatross’ carcass? Why?

PART III

  1. For what reasons does Coleridge make the first stanza six lines?
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    2 –
  2. Why does the Mariner bite his arm and drink his own blood?
  3. What does the Mariner claim he seems?
  4. How do the sailors initially react to seeing the sail?
  5. What do they realize about the ship shortly after seeing it?
  6. What time of day is it during this part of the story?
  7. How is the approaching ship described?
  8. Who is aboard the approaching ship?
  9. How is the woman directly characterized?
  10. What game does the woman play against the man? What are the terms?
  11. How does the setting of the sun reinforce the supernatural occurrences in this part of the poem?
  12. How do the sailors react to the Mariner near the end of this part?
  1. What occurs to the entire crew with the exception of the Mariner?

PART IV

  1. How does the Wedding Guest react to the Mariner? How does the Mariner react?
  2. What does the Mariner recount about his early experiences living alone?
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    2 –
    3 –
  3. What is assumed about the Mariner based on the fact he can’t pray?
  4. What supernatural effect is placed on the dead men?
  5. How long does the Mariner have to look at these men in this manner?
  6. What supernatural effect is seen in terms of the ocean?
  7. How does the Mariner change while watching the water snakes?
  8. What two things happen when the Mariner blesses the water snakes?
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    2 –

PART V

  1. How does the Mariner experience relief in the beginning of this Part? To whom does he give credit?
  2. What does the Mariner hear? What is strange about this experience?
  3. In what ways is the storm odd?
  4. What happens to the dead sailors?
  5. How is this possible according to the Mariner?
  6. What role does the Spirit from the South play in the ship’s passage through the sea?
  7. Is the Spirit from the South still angry with the Mariner?
  1. What happens to the ship that causes the Mariner to faint?
  2. What do these spirits reveal about the Albatross?
  3. What do they reveal about the Mariner?

PART VI

  1. What does the Mariner realize when he wakes up?
  2. To where does the Mariner sail?
  3. What happens to the dead men?
  4. How are the seraphs described?
  5. Who is on the boat that sails out to the Mariner’s ship?

PART VII

  1. What attracted the attention of the pilot and the other two?
  2. What is the Hermit and Pilot’s impression of the ship?
  3. What happens to the Mariner’s ship and the Mariner?
  4. What reactions to the men have to the Mariner?
  5. What does the Mariner request of the Hermit?
  6. What is the Mariner’s penance?
  7. What lesson does the Mariner teach the Wedding Guest?
  8. How is the Wedding Guest affected by the end of the story? Why?