EACH corse lay flat, lifeless and flat,
And, by the holy rood!
A man all light, a seraph-man,
On every corse there stood.
This seraph-band, each waved his hand:
It was a heavenly sight!
They stood as signals to the land,
Each one a lovely light;
This seraph-band, each waved his hand,
No voice did they impart—
No voice; but O, the silence sank
Like music on my heart.
Précis
Coleridge’s ancient Mariner sees angels or spirits rise on the dead bodies of the ship’s crew. The vision is eerie, but it is nevertheless beautiful. The spirits do not fill him with terror: their wordless salute moves him deeply, as if it had been heavenly music. (46 / 60 words)