The Rime of the Ancient Mariner
Coleridge wrote one of the most haunting narrative poems in English — a sailor who kills an albatross and brings a curse down on his ship.
“Water, water, everywhere, nor any drop to drink.”
Why It Matters
Coleridge wrote one of the most haunting narrative poems in English — a sailor who kills an albatross and brings a curse down on his ship. The poem's imagery — the "painted ship upon a painted ocean," the dead men standing — entered the English imagination permanently. "Albatross around your neck" became an idiom because this poem is that powerful.
The 
Take
Personal reviewAwesome poem, fun supernatural deep story, mostly about not disrespecting nature. Only read this because I heard it inspired Melville to write Moby dick. Great quick read. Not too difficult to understand, but very metrical and rhymey too. Great imagery
Notable Quotes
“He prayeth best, who loveth best all things both great and small.”
“Like one, that on a lonesome road doth walk in fear and dread.”