Summary and Interpertation of Coleridge's "Rime of the Ancient Mariner"

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To start off this poem, the reader is taken to the scene of a wedding. Quite a beautiful way to start a poem wouldn't you think? In comes in this mariner, wanting to share his story. A story in my opinion has quite a valuable "take home" lesson that can be used in life. In the beginning of the mariner's story he recalls being with his crew and being lost at sea. With ice all around, there is no life, no hope. At last, a small symbol of hope appears in the shape of an albatross. Along with the albatross comes good fortune to the crew. Out of boredom; or who knows why, the mariner shoots the albatross with his crossbow. This action leads to great misfortune to the crew, especially the mariner. The crew goes hungry and thirsty. They are never to make progress towards their destination. After much suffering what appears to be a ghost ship appears. Death and his mate play a game. The mate wins and decides the fate of the ship. Life-in-death is what she decided. The mariner is forced to watch as all of his fellow crew members drop dead before him and there is nothing that he can do about it. After much suffering, the mariner is forgiven and travels to tell his story to others, like the wedding guest.
What I think the lesson in this poem is that you should think before you act and also destroying hope for others can ultimately come back to haunt you. The mariner didn't think about all of the good luck and happiness that the albatross was bringing before he shot the bird. If he would of thought before he acted then his crew and him wouldn't of had to suffer the way that they did. Karma plays a really big part in this poem. The evidence is everything that happens to the mariner after he shoots the bird. I think that the lessons in this poem are really good things that people really need to learn and apply in their lives.