From "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner" "The souls did from their bodies fly - They fled to bliss or woe! And every soul, it passed me by, Like the whizz of my crossbow!" What do these lines indicate about the Mariner's feelings for the death of his shipmates?

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26 July, 08:37

From "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner" "The souls did from their bodies fly - They fled to bliss or woe! And every soul, it passed me by, Like the whizz of my crossbow!" What do these lines indicate about the Mariner's feelings for the death of his shipmates?

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Kirsten Berry · Answer 1

These words indicate the Mariner's feelings about the death of his shipmates.

By using words like "fly" and "fled," the Mariner is equating their deaths to an escape. While his shipmates are granted a release in the form of death, the Mariner is forced to continue living to pay for the death of the albatross.

Therefore, the Mariner is envious of the escape his shipmates have been granted. The souls of his shipmates flee and pass by him - - but the Mariner must continue on.