Coleridge's Mind example essay topic

A single inanimate object, The Eolian Harp, sends Coleridge flitting in, out, over and through introspection. The trajectory of the poem may be plotted as follows: terrestrial observations, fixation upon single terrestrial item (i.e. the harp), exulting single item into transcendence, an astral purview of the terrestrial via the item, reassessment of mind frame, guilt and denunciation of transcendent thought, and finally, remorse and dismissal of all preceding drivel (as to adequately and respectfully embrace the noumenal realm). Coleridge's brain waves wend in a circuitous manner, however, the final result is a sentiment-shift regarding man's position before (or, as Coleridge concludes, beneath) God. Stanza one proffers an apostrophic dupe, as Coleridge calls out to his "pensive Sara". Pedestrian predictability would indicate an amorous ode, perhaps asserting (due regard given to the title) that Sara is a form of caution thrown to the wind, thus generating sweet music from aforementioned harp. This is immediately proven incorrect, as seen in the succeeding lines.

The first stanza curtails with a descriptive rant, offering a sense of conviction, as though it be a poem unto itself. Lines 10 through 12 read: Snatched from yon bean-field! and the world so hushed! /The stilly murmur of the distant sea / Tells us of silence/. The barrage of exclamation in concomitance with mentions of silence serve as a paradox which ultimately muzzles narration. "Silence" is apropos in halting a poem, as logic indicates that once a poem reaches its end, the mind ceases churning and goes "silent". However, in this instance, it may be construed as poetic device.

Acknowledging that the poem (both literally and figuratively) chimes on, the remaining syllables curiously missing from line 12 are transferred to line 13: /And that simplest lute, /. Coleridge once again takes possession of his narrative, linking the two stanzas with a conjunction. Moreover, this line seethes with audible sound, the only tangibly present noun being "lute". Here, with the commencement of Stanza 2, Coleridge begins to divest himself of earthly bodies as to become engrossed in the harp's presence. First, the harp is only stationed atop the window's sill. Gradually, Coleridge introduces the components necessary for the harp to function.

At line 20, audio faculties are validated with the "soft floating witchery of sound. "Soft" and "floating" generally denote gentility, whereas "witchery" can indicate malevolent sorcery. Furthermore, "sound" in its sense bears a broad definition; spanning from cacophony to plain old presence-of. By and large, this dubiousness, as the reader shall discover, reflects the tone of the entire poem. Fostering the aforementioned sorcery, while acting as Coleridge's catapult into celestial dealings, is Line 21. Coleridge allows himself to be captured by the "sound" in Line 20 and is therefore ousted from a grounded reality.

Lines 21 through 24 read: /As twilight Elfins make, when they at eve / Voyage on gentle gales from Fairy-Land / Where Melodies round honey-dripping flowers, /Footless and wild, like birds of Paradise, /. The orbital shift is blaring ly ostensible, beginning with the introduction of "Elfins". These mischievous fairies (as they are widely thought to be) personify the product of breeze and harp. Additionally, there appears to be a linkage between Elfins, Fairy-Land, Melodies, and Paradise - all employing the use of capitalization, which would implicate a stress of importance. To compute this syllogistically: The Elfins (breeze), indigenous to Fairy-Land (the physical harp), coagulate into Melodies, thus creating a sonic Paradise.

Contextually, this appears nonsensical; yet it is at the very pith of Coleridge's sentiment concerning the harp and its wonderment (upon which he chooses to 'harp', albeit for a brief stint as the reader shall soon see). The dramatic conversion of thought is first made apparent in Line 26: /O the life within us and abroad/. In deliverance, this line emerges rather peculiar, considering the style Coleridge has previous employed. A reader would expect to be met with an exclamation at line's, or perhaps even stanza's, end.

This would serve to relate an emphatic zeal, which is now notably absent. Thus, a reader may conclude that Coleridge's great epiphany is one of great calm and divorced from all mortal urgency. The remainder of Stanza 2 is dedicated to this revelation [that being justification of (the capitalized) "Music" (contained within Line 33) as an espouser of life) in extended reverie. Stanza 3 marks the return of Coleridge from his "idle " (so termed in Line 34), as he once again apostrophizes his "love" (noting the use of a lowercase "L") in exclamation. Once again sanctioned in the temporal, he rationalizes the "indolent and passive" (Line 41) ways of his brain in somewhat of an apologetic manner. Reflecting upon his hastening mind frame, Coleridge juxtaposes himself against the lute itself, hardening to their direct parallels: "/Traverse my indolent and passive brain, /As wild and various as the random gales / That swell and flutter on this subject lute!

/" The exclamation here bespeaks an ironic mode of defense and regret. Quite possibly, The "pensive Sara" is perturbed by Coleridge's lackadaisical nature and stratospheric commentary. Hence, he chooses to bite the bullet of a potential admonishment. However, it is this very self-referential simile that rockets Coleridge back into heavenly blathering. Stanza 4 is launched by a fragment (Line 44 beginning with "And") which states that if he (Coleridge) is comparable to a lute, then the entirety of humankind is also applicable. Wholly, the Stanza is a blurted imperative with four comma-induced pauses (as emphasis is gained with brief reprieve).

The crux of the stanza's intent may be pared down as follows: "/And what if all of animated nature / Be but organic harps diversely framed, /... At once the Soul of each, and God of All? /. Coleridge, ahead of his time, seems to have stumbled upon the core of Buddhist philosophy.

Each person is a "Soul", yet each is a "God", therefore paradoxically melded into an individuated "All". We all draw from the same "intellectual breeze", thus all people are the outgrowth of a single source - this source (the intellect) being our very selves. With trepidation, Coleridge toys with his foreign idea. Despite, he makes sure that it receives due accentuation with the use of one-syllable words (as to halt his reader at the line) in Line 48. Coming upon the final stanza, Coleridge is once again thrown from the depths of thought and re-orients himself upon "O beloved woman!" (Line 50). According to the line, Sara has "reproofed" him with her "more serious eye", as to remind him of the sole omnipotent figure whom they hail: God.

A mere look, as opposed to words from Sara serve to point out philosophical blasphemy and ultimately reprimand Coleridge. According to Lines 51-53, it was Sara who indoctrinated him into the "family of Christ". Therefore, the reader may surmise that inner-more contemplation pales in comparison to the delectable pleasures / motherly comfort of a woman. No vestige of the harp remains, as Coleridge devotes the rest of the work to humbling himself before God and conceding that he is but a pleb ian in comparison.

He goes on rebuke his very own prior claims in Lines 55-57: /The shaping's of the unregenerate mind; /Bubbles that glitter as they rise and break / On vain Philosophy's aye-babbling spring. / The once dolorous notes that pealed the beauty of human existence have morphed into bubbles - pretty on sight, but ultimately ephemeral. Moreover, he deems these philosophical fancies "vain", indicating that he had shown undue preoccupation with the harp as a result of self-absorption. Coleridge has thus stumbled upon a great self-effacing epiphany.

Coleridge also elicits feelings of "guilt" in his doings, going so far as to define God as "/The Incomprehensible! /save when with awe / I praise him... ". The strategic implementation of these two lines displays his reverence more so than it states directly. Line 51 is made emboldened by consecutive capitalization, and abruptly stops with (what seems to be Coleridge's preferably stamp of stress) an exclamation point. Furthermore, he chooses to break the line at "awe", allowing Line 52 to begin with the subtle "I praise him", declaration. A pause, created by the comma, again admits emphasis.

Coleridge's mind-morphing trip ends with a return to that with which he began: "/Peace, and this cot, and thee, heart-honored Maid! /. As asserted by the preceding lines, the so coined 'holier-than-thou' God is responsible for all fortunes bestowed upon Coleridge. He has also chosen to reveal to the reader that the entire poem was, in fact, an address to his "heart-honored Maid". Conceivably, Coleridge has addressed her as such in order to absolve himself of any perceived wrong-doing; specifically in Line 15: /Like some coy maid half yielding to her lover, /. Distinguishing between "maids", (one being a trollop, the other a lady of virtue) is a final attempt to get himself 'off the hook', colloquially speaking.

As delineated in paragraph one, Coleridge's poetic field is one rampant with erratic thought and ultimate change. The proposed subject of the poem, an eolian harp, is virtually abandoned and replaced with veneration of a God as well as a lover. One would think that such a fickle publication would be kept isolated by its author. Although, Coleridge may have staked importance in showing his adoration for God publicly. Hence, the ingress and resultant revocation of the Eolian Harp.