Kubla Khan by Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s “Kubla Khan” as a Romantic Text

Samuel Taylor Coleridge composed a song titled Kubla Khan. In the poem, a character by the name of Kubla Khan visits a location called Xanadu where he encounters conflicting elements of the natural world and supernatural power. In the poem, a romantic text as it was used in writing during the Age of Imagination is depicted. It embodies all the traits of Romanticism, from the importance of the imagination—Coleridge pushes it to create impossibly complex structures like the sunny pleasure dome made of ice—to the exaltation of nature in the country of Xanadu. Through close-reading, this essay will explore the aspects that qualify Kubla Khan as a Romantic text such as the centrality of imagination, glorification of nature, focus on the supernatural, attention to the past, yearning for faraway places, and celebration of rustic life as portrayed in the poem.

The Theme of Adventure

The theme dominating the poem is one of adventure. The title of the poem to some degree relates to this theme by pointing to the adventurous man in the poem; Kubla Khan. Through Kubla’s adventures, the author brings out the aspect of the centrality of imagination in this poem. The speaker talks of caverns measureless to man, a sunny pleasure-dome with caves of ice, and about building the dome in the air. The whole theme of adventure stands on the creations as a result of the imagination. Nature is glorified in most of the text still under the theme of adventure. As Kubla tours Xanadu, he encounters Alph, the sacred river, incense-bearing trees, forests ancient as the hills, spots of greenery, as well as a mighty fountain that was forced out. Coleridge brings out the supernaturalism when he introduces a savage place within Xanadu that is holy and enchanted. The area is claimed to be haunted by a woman who had been waiting for her demon-lover. This is also seen when he speaks of Kubla hearing ancestral voices prophesying war. All these happenings relate to the major theme to a great extent.

Connecting the Past and Future

Additionally, the theme of adventure is further expressed through connecting the past with the future longings. This can be seen when the speaker in the poem recalls seeing a damsel with a dulcimer playing and singing of Mount Abora. This music she produced with her dulcimer inspires the speaker to want to build the sunny pleasure-dome in the air. This portrays a blending of the past, present, and future, all intertwined in the spirit of adventure. When this would happen, this would call for a celebration of life, seen when the speaker talks of drinking the milk of Paradise. The above-discussed characteristics of Romanticism support the dominating theme of the poem, as well as qualifying the poem as a Romantic text.

Poetic Personae in Kubla Khan

Kubla Khan has depicted several poetic personae as it progresses from the beginning to the end. We are introduced to the main character by the name Kubla Khan in the first stanza. Kubla is an adventurous person who travels to the land of Xanadu to explore. He travels across the land where he encounters contrasting compositions of the land with beautiful, breathtaking sceneries on the one hand and scary and fascinating works of nature on the contrary. He also meets supernatural influences where there is an enchanted area, haunted by a wailing woman for her demon-lover, and even hearing ancestral voices prophesying war. Amidst all this mystery, his adventurous spirit does not deter him from exploring the land. His efforts are rewarded, and he finds satisfaction in the pleasure-dome and even wishes to build it in the air. A second character is introduced in the form of a woman who is wailing for her demon-lover. This woman is said to haunt the area beneath the waning moon. The effect of this woman makes the place feel both holy and enchanted. The effect of her wailing causes a mighty fountain to be momently forced which flung up the sacred river, reached the caverns measureless to man, and sank to a lifeless ocean. It is amid this tumult that Kubla heard the ancestral voices prophesying war. The wailing woman, therefore, represents doom.

A third character is a speaker who is evidently introduced in the third stanza. He talks about a vision he had of a damsel playing the dulcimer and singing about Mount Abora. He longs to revive the symphony and the song which would make him build the dome in the air. The last character is the damsel, the Abyssinian maid, who was playing a song on her dulcimer. She brings life in a dull world and inspires to do exploits. These characters depict specific traits in the poem which support the romantic nature of it.

Images of Nature, Society, and Social Relations

The poem uses images that represent nature, society, and social relations. Nature is extensively depicted in this text. For instance, the first stanza introduces us to a Xanadu with a sacred ricer, the Alph, bright gardens with sinuous rills, ancient forests, and sunny spots of greenery. There is also a sunless sea and a lifeless ocean. The different images of nature used show a bright and a dull side of the land mixed to portray how life is with the good and the bad. A societal image is depicted with the mention of a stretch of fertile land, walls and towers girdled around, and gardens bright with sinuous rills. This portrays the existence of life and people in that place. Only people could build walls and towers as well as establish gardens. Social relations can be picked from the woman who is wailing her lover. This means that they had a relationship and the departure of her lover hurts her. The connection between the speaker and the Abyssinian maid can also be seen as a social relation. She plays a song that he longs to revive within him. This means there was a connection that was built between the maid and the speaker through the music.

Language and its Relation to the Theme

The language of the text is used in such a way that it relates to the theme. The choice of words points back to the dominating theme of adventure. For example, enfolding sunny spots of greenery arouses the desire to see these sceneries. Caverns measureless to man and a sunny pleasure-dome with caves of ice all stir up the spirit of adventure. The text also uses words that spark the imagination. For instance, building a dome in the air can only be imaginative and adventurous. Others include a sunless sea and a lifeless ocean.

Influence on the Reader

The poem, Kubla Khan, is meant to have an influence on the reader. The overall effect meant for the audience is to build on the spirit of adventure, imagination, and creativity. Coleridge builds on the power of imagination to paint the pictures portrayed in the poem and to build on the theme of adventure. Most of the images described in the text are purely imaginative and cannot be found in a real case scenario. For instance, the caverns measureless to man and a dome with caves of ice. He talks about building the dome in the air and drinking the milk of paradise. The poet aims to enlarge the reader’s ability to imagine and draw the imaginations creatively using words to bring out vivid images. Those readers that get inspired can emulate the poet and grow themselves in that line.

Kubla Khan as Romantic Literature

As an audience, Kubla Khan stands out as romantic literature. The text exhibits the elements of romanticism from the beginning to the end. Some of the elements that resonate with me include imagination and glorification of nature. My imagination is interrelated with my spirit of adventure. Kubla Khan, therefore, comes as an inspiration to expand my imaginative abilities to create even more adventurous outcomes. Nature is the greatest motivator for adventure. It, therefore, sparks a lot of interest in the journey of adventure. However, the aspect that stands out the most for me in this text is the centrality of imagination. The whole poem is built heavily on creativity coupled with creativity with words to bring out images that can be vividly pictured in the mind as one reads through the text. This is to say that, Kubla Khan has successfully being presented as an ideal Romanticism piece of literature.

Works cited

https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/43991/kubla-khan