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Samuel Taylor Coleridge was born on October 21, 1772 in the rural town of Ottery St Mary, Devonshire. He was the youngest of ten children, and his father, the Reverend John Coleridge, was a well respected vicar.
He is probably best known for his long poems, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner and Christabel. Even those who have never read the Rime have come under its influence: its words have given the English language the metaphor of an albatross around one's neck, the quotation of "water, water everywhere, ne any drop to drink (almost always rendered as "but not a drop to drink")", and the phrase "a sadder and a wiser man (again, usually rendered as "sadder but wiser man")". Christabel is known for its musical rhythm, language, and its Gothic tale.
Kubla Khan, or, A Vision in a Dream, A Fragment, although shorter, is also widely known. Both Kubla Khan and Christabel have an additional "romantic" aura because they were never finished. Both poems are revered for their "exquisite metrical movement" and "imaginative phrasing." (Click the headline for the complete 'Rime' )
In an incredible juxtaposition of the 18th and 21st centuries, the heavy metal rock group Iron Maiden produced the following tribute to Coleridge's signature poem. It is in two parts, the second of which can be accessed by clicking 'read more.'
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Never speak to strangers at weddings!
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