The Rime of the Ancient Mariner is important

Reading The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, I kept getting a mythological feel from the whole poem. The use of repetition in wording and meter gave the whole poem a more Homeric structure. Coleridge builds up the drama and suspense throughout his poem using these features. This poem seems like an important piece of literature. Coleridge, (as well as Wordsworth and Lavin, for that matter) using very basic elements of storytelling, sets up a plethora of subtexts for this piece to be read about. Many interpretations have arisen from this poem, including Christian allegories, man vs. nature, psychological horrors of the human psyche, and one critic citing this as an autobiographical piece about Coleridge himself. This poem allows for all of these interpretations to be accurate, and to me, that is a sign of good storytelling. Stories that are singular in theme and ideas are never as positively cerebral as the ones that sit with you for awhile. They should encourage you want to learn more about what you just read, and this piece did that for me.

Oh, and also this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f4ZMaz14Psw