NCERT Textbook - The Rime of the Ancient Mariner | Literature Reader Class 10 PDF Download

 Page 1


CBSE
111
1. Look at the picture carefully and answer the questions given below:
1. What can you see in the picture? 
Does the man look happy? Give 
reasons for your answer.
2. Why does he have the bird 
hanging around his neck?
3. H a v e y o u h e a r d o f t h e 
expression-'having an albatross 
around your neck'? What do you 
think it means? Does it mean:
a. something that you can 
always be proud of
b. something that you have to 
do because you have no 
choice
c. something that is with you all 
the time as a reminder that 
you have done something 
wrong?
4. What is an albatross?
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner is one of the best known classical poems written in 
English, containing some very beautiful and memorable lines. You may find that it 
needs some work and attention from you to understand it, before you are in a 
position to appreciate and respond to the beauty of the language that it contains.
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner is a ballad, i.e. it tells a story. Ballad poetry usually 
includes archaic words and spellings.
11 11
UNIT UNIT
Poetry
P.5    The Rime of the Ancient Mariner
by Samuel Taylor Coleridge
Page 2


CBSE
111
1. Look at the picture carefully and answer the questions given below:
1. What can you see in the picture? 
Does the man look happy? Give 
reasons for your answer.
2. Why does he have the bird 
hanging around his neck?
3. H a v e y o u h e a r d o f t h e 
expression-'having an albatross 
around your neck'? What do you 
think it means? Does it mean:
a. something that you can 
always be proud of
b. something that you have to 
do because you have no 
choice
c. something that is with you all 
the time as a reminder that 
you have done something 
wrong?
4. What is an albatross?
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner is one of the best known classical poems written in 
English, containing some very beautiful and memorable lines. You may find that it 
needs some work and attention from you to understand it, before you are in a 
position to appreciate and respond to the beauty of the language that it contains.
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner is a ballad, i.e. it tells a story. Ballad poetry usually 
includes archaic words and spellings.
11 11
UNIT UNIT
Poetry
P.5    The Rime of the Ancient Mariner
by Samuel Taylor Coleridge
CBSE
Poetry 
112
Since it is a long poem, only the first two parts have been included in this Unit.  Your 
teacher will help you read the other five parts after you complete this Unit. 
2. Listen carefully as the teacher reads out the first part of the poem to you or makes 
you  listen to a recording of the poem.
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner
Part I
1
It is an ancient Mariner ,
And he stoppeth one of three.
2
'By thy long grey beard and glittering eye,
Now wherefore stopp'st thou me?
 5 The bridegroom's doors are opened wide,
3
And I am next of kin ;
The guests are met, the feast is set:
May'st hear the merry din.'
9 He holds him with his skinny hand,
4
"There was a ship," quoth he.
5
'Hold off! unhand me, grey-beard loon !'
6
Eftsoons his hand dropt he.
13 He holds him with his glittering eye- 
The Wedding-Guest stood still,
And listens like a three years' child:
The Mariner hath his will.
17 The Wedding-Guest sat on a stone:
He cannot choose but hear;
And thus spake on that ancient man,
The bright-eyed Mariner.
21 "The ship was cheered, the harbour cleared,
Merrily did we drop
7
Below the kirk , below the hill,
Below the lighthouse top.
1 Mariner - sailor 
2 glittering - shining brightly, with flashing points of light
3 kin - members of your family
4 quoth - said
5 loon - a mad person
6 Eftsoons - at once
7 kirk - church
Page 3


CBSE
111
1. Look at the picture carefully and answer the questions given below:
1. What can you see in the picture? 
Does the man look happy? Give 
reasons for your answer.
2. Why does he have the bird 
hanging around his neck?
3. H a v e y o u h e a r d o f t h e 
expression-'having an albatross 
around your neck'? What do you 
think it means? Does it mean:
a. something that you can 
always be proud of
b. something that you have to 
do because you have no 
choice
c. something that is with you all 
the time as a reminder that 
you have done something 
wrong?
4. What is an albatross?
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner is one of the best known classical poems written in 
English, containing some very beautiful and memorable lines. You may find that it 
needs some work and attention from you to understand it, before you are in a 
position to appreciate and respond to the beauty of the language that it contains.
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner is a ballad, i.e. it tells a story. Ballad poetry usually 
includes archaic words and spellings.
11 11
UNIT UNIT
Poetry
P.5    The Rime of the Ancient Mariner
by Samuel Taylor Coleridge
CBSE
Poetry 
112
Since it is a long poem, only the first two parts have been included in this Unit.  Your 
teacher will help you read the other five parts after you complete this Unit. 
2. Listen carefully as the teacher reads out the first part of the poem to you or makes 
you  listen to a recording of the poem.
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner
Part I
1
It is an ancient Mariner ,
And he stoppeth one of three.
2
'By thy long grey beard and glittering eye,
Now wherefore stopp'st thou me?
 5 The bridegroom's doors are opened wide,
3
And I am next of kin ;
The guests are met, the feast is set:
May'st hear the merry din.'
9 He holds him with his skinny hand,
4
"There was a ship," quoth he.
5
'Hold off! unhand me, grey-beard loon !'
6
Eftsoons his hand dropt he.
13 He holds him with his glittering eye- 
The Wedding-Guest stood still,
And listens like a three years' child:
The Mariner hath his will.
17 The Wedding-Guest sat on a stone:
He cannot choose but hear;
And thus spake on that ancient man,
The bright-eyed Mariner.
21 "The ship was cheered, the harbour cleared,
Merrily did we drop
7
Below the kirk , below the hill,
Below the lighthouse top.
1 Mariner - sailor 
2 glittering - shining brightly, with flashing points of light
3 kin - members of your family
4 quoth - said
5 loon - a mad person
6 Eftsoons - at once
7 kirk - church
CBSE
Poetry
113
      25 The sun came up upon the left,
Out of the sea came he!
And he shone bright, and on the right
Went down into the sea.
      29 Higher and higher every day,
Till over the mast at noon-
The Wedding-Guest here beat his breast,
8
For he heard the loud bassoon .
      33 The bride hath paced into the hall,
Red as a rose is she;
Nodding their heads before her goes
9
The merry minstrelsy .
      37 The Wedding-Guest he beat his breast,
Yet he cannot choose but hear;
And thus spake on that ancient man,
The bright-eyed Mariner.
      41 "And now the storm-blast came, and he
10
Was tyrannous and strong:
He struck with his o'ertaking wings,
And chased us south along.
11
      45 With sloping masts and dipping prow ,
12
As who pursued with yell and blow
13
Still treads the shadow of his foe ,
And forward bends his head,
The ship drove fast, loud roared the blast,
And southward aye we fled.
     51 And now there came both mist and snow,
And it grew wondrous cold:
And ice, mast-high, came floating by,
14
As green as emerald .
8 bassoon - a musical instrument
9 minstrelsy - singers and musicians
10 tyrannous - cruel, severe, harsh
11 prow - the front part of a ship
12 pursued - chased
13 foe - enemy
14 emerald - a precious stone, which is clear and bright green
Page 4


CBSE
111
1. Look at the picture carefully and answer the questions given below:
1. What can you see in the picture? 
Does the man look happy? Give 
reasons for your answer.
2. Why does he have the bird 
hanging around his neck?
3. H a v e y o u h e a r d o f t h e 
expression-'having an albatross 
around your neck'? What do you 
think it means? Does it mean:
a. something that you can 
always be proud of
b. something that you have to 
do because you have no 
choice
c. something that is with you all 
the time as a reminder that 
you have done something 
wrong?
4. What is an albatross?
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner is one of the best known classical poems written in 
English, containing some very beautiful and memorable lines. You may find that it 
needs some work and attention from you to understand it, before you are in a 
position to appreciate and respond to the beauty of the language that it contains.
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner is a ballad, i.e. it tells a story. Ballad poetry usually 
includes archaic words and spellings.
11 11
UNIT UNIT
Poetry
P.5    The Rime of the Ancient Mariner
by Samuel Taylor Coleridge
CBSE
Poetry 
112
Since it is a long poem, only the first two parts have been included in this Unit.  Your 
teacher will help you read the other five parts after you complete this Unit. 
2. Listen carefully as the teacher reads out the first part of the poem to you or makes 
you  listen to a recording of the poem.
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner
Part I
1
It is an ancient Mariner ,
And he stoppeth one of three.
2
'By thy long grey beard and glittering eye,
Now wherefore stopp'st thou me?
 5 The bridegroom's doors are opened wide,
3
And I am next of kin ;
The guests are met, the feast is set:
May'st hear the merry din.'
9 He holds him with his skinny hand,
4
"There was a ship," quoth he.
5
'Hold off! unhand me, grey-beard loon !'
6
Eftsoons his hand dropt he.
13 He holds him with his glittering eye- 
The Wedding-Guest stood still,
And listens like a three years' child:
The Mariner hath his will.
17 The Wedding-Guest sat on a stone:
He cannot choose but hear;
And thus spake on that ancient man,
The bright-eyed Mariner.
21 "The ship was cheered, the harbour cleared,
Merrily did we drop
7
Below the kirk , below the hill,
Below the lighthouse top.
1 Mariner - sailor 
2 glittering - shining brightly, with flashing points of light
3 kin - members of your family
4 quoth - said
5 loon - a mad person
6 Eftsoons - at once
7 kirk - church
CBSE
Poetry
113
      25 The sun came up upon the left,
Out of the sea came he!
And he shone bright, and on the right
Went down into the sea.
      29 Higher and higher every day,
Till over the mast at noon-
The Wedding-Guest here beat his breast,
8
For he heard the loud bassoon .
      33 The bride hath paced into the hall,
Red as a rose is she;
Nodding their heads before her goes
9
The merry minstrelsy .
      37 The Wedding-Guest he beat his breast,
Yet he cannot choose but hear;
And thus spake on that ancient man,
The bright-eyed Mariner.
      41 "And now the storm-blast came, and he
10
Was tyrannous and strong:
He struck with his o'ertaking wings,
And chased us south along.
11
      45 With sloping masts and dipping prow ,
12
As who pursued with yell and blow
13
Still treads the shadow of his foe ,
And forward bends his head,
The ship drove fast, loud roared the blast,
And southward aye we fled.
     51 And now there came both mist and snow,
And it grew wondrous cold:
And ice, mast-high, came floating by,
14
As green as emerald .
8 bassoon - a musical instrument
9 minstrelsy - singers and musicians
10 tyrannous - cruel, severe, harsh
11 prow - the front part of a ship
12 pursued - chased
13 foe - enemy
14 emerald - a precious stone, which is clear and bright green
2
CBSE
Poetry 
15 16
     55 And through the drifts the snowy clifts
17
Did send a dismal sheen :
18
Nor shapes of men nor beasts we ken - 
The ice was all between.
     59 The ice was here, the ice was there,
The ice was all around:
It cracked and growled, and roared and howled,
19
Like noises in a swound !
63   At length did cross an Albatross,
Through the fog it came;
As it had been a Christian soul,
We hailed it in God's name.
67 It ate the food it ne'er had eat,
And round and round it flew.
The ice did split with a thunder-fit;
20
The helmsman steered us through!
71 And a good south wind sprung up behind;
The Albatross did follow,
And every day, for food or play,
21
Came to the mariner's hollo !
22
     75 In mist or cloud, on mast or shroud ,
23 24
It perched for vespers nine ,
Whiles all the night, through fog-smoke white,
Glimmered the white moonshine."
79 'God save thee, ancient Mariner,
25
From the fiends that plague thee thus!- 
26 
Why look'st thou so?'-"With my crossbow
I shot the Albatross."
114
15 drifts - floating ice
16 clifts - steep sides of the ice-bergs
17 Sheen - a smooth and gentle brightness on the 
surface of something
18 ken - see
19 swound - a fainting fit
20 helmsman - the person steering the ship
21 hollo - shout, call
22 shroud - sail
23 perched - sat on the edge of something
24 vespers nine - a fixed time every day (the 
evening church service)
25 plague - to bother, trouble
26 crossbow - a very powerful bow and arrow, with 
a trigger
Page 5


CBSE
111
1. Look at the picture carefully and answer the questions given below:
1. What can you see in the picture? 
Does the man look happy? Give 
reasons for your answer.
2. Why does he have the bird 
hanging around his neck?
3. H a v e y o u h e a r d o f t h e 
expression-'having an albatross 
around your neck'? What do you 
think it means? Does it mean:
a. something that you can 
always be proud of
b. something that you have to 
do because you have no 
choice
c. something that is with you all 
the time as a reminder that 
you have done something 
wrong?
4. What is an albatross?
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner is one of the best known classical poems written in 
English, containing some very beautiful and memorable lines. You may find that it 
needs some work and attention from you to understand it, before you are in a 
position to appreciate and respond to the beauty of the language that it contains.
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner is a ballad, i.e. it tells a story. Ballad poetry usually 
includes archaic words and spellings.
11 11
UNIT UNIT
Poetry
P.5    The Rime of the Ancient Mariner
by Samuel Taylor Coleridge
CBSE
Poetry 
112
Since it is a long poem, only the first two parts have been included in this Unit.  Your 
teacher will help you read the other five parts after you complete this Unit. 
2. Listen carefully as the teacher reads out the first part of the poem to you or makes 
you  listen to a recording of the poem.
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner
Part I
1
It is an ancient Mariner ,
And he stoppeth one of three.
2
'By thy long grey beard and glittering eye,
Now wherefore stopp'st thou me?
 5 The bridegroom's doors are opened wide,
3
And I am next of kin ;
The guests are met, the feast is set:
May'st hear the merry din.'
9 He holds him with his skinny hand,
4
"There was a ship," quoth he.
5
'Hold off! unhand me, grey-beard loon !'
6
Eftsoons his hand dropt he.
13 He holds him with his glittering eye- 
The Wedding-Guest stood still,
And listens like a three years' child:
The Mariner hath his will.
17 The Wedding-Guest sat on a stone:
He cannot choose but hear;
And thus spake on that ancient man,
The bright-eyed Mariner.
21 "The ship was cheered, the harbour cleared,
Merrily did we drop
7
Below the kirk , below the hill,
Below the lighthouse top.
1 Mariner - sailor 
2 glittering - shining brightly, with flashing points of light
3 kin - members of your family
4 quoth - said
5 loon - a mad person
6 Eftsoons - at once
7 kirk - church
CBSE
Poetry
113
      25 The sun came up upon the left,
Out of the sea came he!
And he shone bright, and on the right
Went down into the sea.
      29 Higher and higher every day,
Till over the mast at noon-
The Wedding-Guest here beat his breast,
8
For he heard the loud bassoon .
      33 The bride hath paced into the hall,
Red as a rose is she;
Nodding their heads before her goes
9
The merry minstrelsy .
      37 The Wedding-Guest he beat his breast,
Yet he cannot choose but hear;
And thus spake on that ancient man,
The bright-eyed Mariner.
      41 "And now the storm-blast came, and he
10
Was tyrannous and strong:
He struck with his o'ertaking wings,
And chased us south along.
11
      45 With sloping masts and dipping prow ,
12
As who pursued with yell and blow
13
Still treads the shadow of his foe ,
And forward bends his head,
The ship drove fast, loud roared the blast,
And southward aye we fled.
     51 And now there came both mist and snow,
And it grew wondrous cold:
And ice, mast-high, came floating by,
14
As green as emerald .
8 bassoon - a musical instrument
9 minstrelsy - singers and musicians
10 tyrannous - cruel, severe, harsh
11 prow - the front part of a ship
12 pursued - chased
13 foe - enemy
14 emerald - a precious stone, which is clear and bright green
2
CBSE
Poetry 
15 16
     55 And through the drifts the snowy clifts
17
Did send a dismal sheen :
18
Nor shapes of men nor beasts we ken - 
The ice was all between.
     59 The ice was here, the ice was there,
The ice was all around:
It cracked and growled, and roared and howled,
19
Like noises in a swound !
63   At length did cross an Albatross,
Through the fog it came;
As it had been a Christian soul,
We hailed it in God's name.
67 It ate the food it ne'er had eat,
And round and round it flew.
The ice did split with a thunder-fit;
20
The helmsman steered us through!
71 And a good south wind sprung up behind;
The Albatross did follow,
And every day, for food or play,
21
Came to the mariner's hollo !
22
     75 In mist or cloud, on mast or shroud ,
23 24
It perched for vespers nine ,
Whiles all the night, through fog-smoke white,
Glimmered the white moonshine."
79 'God save thee, ancient Mariner,
25
From the fiends that plague thee thus!- 
26 
Why look'st thou so?'-"With my crossbow
I shot the Albatross."
114
15 drifts - floating ice
16 clifts - steep sides of the ice-bergs
17 Sheen - a smooth and gentle brightness on the 
surface of something
18 ken - see
19 swound - a fainting fit
20 helmsman - the person steering the ship
21 hollo - shout, call
22 shroud - sail
23 perched - sat on the edge of something
24 vespers nine - a fixed time every day (the 
evening church service)
25 plague - to bother, trouble
26 crossbow - a very powerful bow and arrow, with 
a trigger
CBSE
Poetry
115
3. The teacher will now assign roles and ask you  to read the poem aloud to show 
how the poem has been written in the first person ( the parts in quotation marks 
spoken by the Mariner) and in the third person (where the narrator comments 
about the events taking place)
4. Here are some of the archaic words used in the poem; can you match them with 
the words used in modern English language that mean the same? The first one 
has been done for you as an example:
stoppeth why
thy entered 
wherefore stopped
stopp'st you
thou lunatic
may'st at once
quoth fainting fit
loon has
eftsoons can't you
dropt stopping
hath church
spake enemy
kirk yes
paced see
foe call
aye trouble
ken looking
swound your
hollo said
plague dropped
look'st spoke