Kubla Khan Poem by Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Marius Roland Banica

Written Engl. and Lit Studies II (ENGL-112-DLA 14)

Prof. Lynne Rosenthal

In 1798, Samuel Taylor Coleridge composed a poem called "Kubla Khan" The poem was never completed as Coleridge wrote it following opium influenced dream, therefore the poem is open to various interpretations. The theme of "Kubla Khan" is Coleridge's desire to balance and reconcile all aspects of his being. Coleridge experienced a fantasy-like world which he wanted to share with the readers. To accomplish this, Coleridge uses three types of poetic techniques to convey his theme. First, he uses visual imagery to reproduce a paradise-like vision of the landscape and kingdom created by Kubla Khan. Second, through sound the poem shifts to the first person narrative as the speaker then attempts to recreate a vision he saw. Third, Coleridge uses rhythm to emphasize a change in scene, hence creating echoes within the poem to achieve musicality. By combining these techniques, Coleridge's abstract concept could potentially become a tangible image for the reader.

Coleridge utilizes visual imagery to fashion his vision of Kubla's Paradise. Through the use of personification, plain imagery and similes Coleridge sets the foundation to a paradise-like representation of his vision inviting the readers into his dream. The environment described is rich with wild landscape, and houses a pleasure dome surrounded by walls and towers. First, Coleridge writes "And 'midst these dancing rocks at once and ever" in which he utilizes personification by giving the rocks the human characteristics and emotions. By using 'dancing' he portrays the emotion of joyfulness movement as they peak over the sacred river. Coleridge wants to captivate the mind of the reader by assigning human like characteristics and emotions to non-living objects. Second, Coleridge uses plain imagery, for example, in the sentence "With walls and towers were girdled round". Not only does this express the importance of the palace as it is well protected, it also showcases how powerful Kubla was by being able to command his subjects to build this magnificent structure, in the middle of the wilderness. Third, Coleridge uses similes, for example, in the line "huge fragments vaulted like rebounding hail" this illustrates the force of the huge boulders which are thrown back up into the air. By using the word hail it shows the strength of the boulders as they do not shatter on impact. Coleridge is using the example of hail to describe an upward movement whereas this is a contrast to the natural downward movement of hail. This is an example of extreme contradiction. With these techniques Coleridge forms the outlines of his immerse setting.

With the basis now in place, Coleridge uses sound which gives color to the black and white sketch previously created with the usage of visual imagery. Following that he sets a tone that sounds like a 'symphony orchestra'.

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