“Kubla Khan” A Description of Earthly Paradise Essay example

â€Å"Kubla Khan† by Samuel Taylor Coleridge is said to be â€Å"one of the best remembered works of the Romantic period,† (Gray) and though this poem may seem speak deeply about the world, its conception was fairly simple: Coleridge had been reading a book about Kubla Khan in Xanadu (by a man named Samuel Purchas) before falling into a deep sleep induced by an opium mixture to which he had long since had an addiction. When he awoke from this drug induced stupor, he had apparently 200 to 300 lines of poetry in his head, but after writing the first three stanzas, was interrupted (and thus, we observe a shift in the poem at that point) by â€Å"a person from Porlock† (Brett 46-8) and could only remember one final bit of lines – the final stanza in†¦show more content†¦As for when the poem is set, Coleridge is very unclear. Kubla Khan is a figure from the past, seeming to signify that this poem took place then. However, this poem is â€Å"A Vision i n a Dream† – when do dreams take place? Coleridge’s leaving the reader confused here only assists him in setting up the bewilderment that lasts throughout the majority of â€Å"Kubla Khan.† The speaker in â€Å"Kubla Khan† can be said to be one who is either unsatisfied with the world, one who feels like an outsider in the world, much like Coleridge himself did. The speaker seems to be speaking to the world in general, or possibly to other astute minds who are also on the outside of society. One of the dominant techniques present in â€Å"Kubla Khan† is contrasting imagery. Coleridge repeatedly compares the â€Å"bright† area surrounding the dome to the â€Å"lifeless† and â€Å"haunted† area surrounding the river. He continually repeats the phrases â€Å"pleasure-dome† and â€Å"sunny† when discussing the dome, whereas for his illustration of the surrounding river and caverns, â€Å"caves of ice† is most prominent. One idea as to why this was so implemented is the idea that the poem â€Å"contrasts a man-made, earthly paradise, which proves to be unable to resist demonic forces and is doomed to be annihilated, with a â€Å"true† form of paradise;† (Schroeder) that the Earth, no matter how beautiful it might seem, always falls victim to certain destructive forces.Show MoreRelated Kubla Khan by Samuel Taylor Coleridge Essay1147 Words   |  5 Pagesâ€Å"Kubla Khan† by Samuel Taylor Coleridge â€Å"Kubla Khan† by Samuel Taylor Coleridge is a poem about the creative powers of the poetic mind. Through the use of vivid imagery Coleridge reproduces a paradise-like vision of the landscape and kingdom created by Kubla Khan. The poem changes to the 1st person narrative and the speaker then attempts to recreate a vision he saw. Through the description of the visions of Kubla Khan’s palace and the speaker’s visions the poem tells of the creation of an enchantingRead MoreKubla Khan -1289 Words   |  6 Pages#8220;Kubla Khan#8221; by Samuel Taylor Coleridge is a poem about the creative powers of the poetic mind. Through the use of vivid imagery Coleridge reproduces a paradise-like vision of the landscape and kingdom created by Kubla Khan. The poem changes to the 1st person narrative and the speaker then attempts to recreate a vision he saw. Through the description of the visions of Kubla Khan#8217;s palace and the speaker#8217;s visions the poem tells of t he creation of an enchanting beautiful