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  • Essay / The Romantic Other; Edward Said's “Orientalism” applied to Samuel Taylor Coleridge's “Kubla Khan”

    In his poem "Kubla Khan" and its accompanying prologue, Samuel Taylor Coleridge presents two ideas: the changeable nature of the imagination and the beauty of the stranger. and exotic. Many scholars consider the story behind the poem's composition not only to be one of the most significant events of the Romantic movement, but also of literature as a whole. Gregory Leadbetter, for example, states that "it is its own creation myth." However, this "myth" surrounding the discovery and loss of inspiration should in no way overshadow or distract from the poem itself, for it is a myth in which Coleridge displays great poetic ability and exemplifies what Edward Said would later call “orientalism”. ". Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”? Get an original essay In the prologue, Coleridge explains how he composed the poem after a dream “in which all the images [of the poem] arose before him as things, with a parallel production of the corresponding expressions. 'a barely explained interruption This fragmentation of the poem is in itself very important because of the implications it has for the limits of the imagination. One gets the feeling that Coleridge is disappointed in himself for not being able to finish. the poem, even to the point of feeling somewhat robbed, as he writes in the prologue: “Tomorrow I will sing a sweeter song: but tomorrow has not yet come” [p. 460] Coleridge seems to suggest. that perfection, or perhaps even something close to perfection, is somehow an elusive state, always beyond what we are capable of achieving. This feeling of disappointment in himself continues in the poem itself with him writing "Could I revive within myself / His symphony and his son, / With such deep pleasure it would win me, / That with a loud and long music, / I would build this dome in the air.” [Lines 42-46] His wish to “rebuild this dome” is a wish to re-envision this dream and thus complete his poem. He does, however, suggest a certain pride in the poem, inadvertently calling it “gentle” [p. 460], thus suggesting that although perfection or true excellence is not attainable due to the limitations of human imagination, something close can be achieved. Imagination, for Coleridge, is something that is not unlimited in its capabilities but is nonetheless capable of great achievements. Another central point of the poem is the attraction and intrigue associated with the exotic. The influence of extravagant images and ideas regarding Kublai Khan's court in Xanadu is easily demonstrated through the sense of awe, mysticism, and undeniable beauty present in the poem. Coleridge describes “Alph, the sacred river” [Line 3], “two five miles of fertile land / With girdled walls and towers” ​​[Lines 6-7] and “A sunny pleasure dome with caves of ice!” » [Line 6] These almost hyperbolic descriptions show a passion for this particular aspect of the foreigner which, compared to the works of other Romantic poets who focused on the home of beauty in Britain (such as Wordsworth and his poem " Tintern Abbey"), suggests an interest in an aspect of the sublime more worldly and unknown than his peers. While Wordsworth focuses on "the steep, high cliffs" and the "hedges, barely hedges, little lines / Of wild sporting woods", Coleridge is much more comfortable with the.1868