A comprehensive interactive guide to prosody and metre in English poetry, using examples drawn from The Rime of the Ancient Mariner and Iron Maiden’s 1984 adaptation. Covers metrical feet, ballad metre, Coleridge’s variations, secondary stress, accentual-syllabic verse, free verse, and the interplay of metre with other poetic techniques. Includes interactive scansion exercises.
Iron Maiden’s 1984 epic has introduced Coleridge’s poem to millions. This video examines how Steve Harris weaves together Coleridge’s poem, his 1817 gloss, and his own words — and what is lost and gained in the process.
A colour-coded analysis of Iron Maiden’s 1984 heavy metal adaptation of The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, identifying what Steve Harris drew verbatim from Coleridge’s poem, what he borrowed from the 1817 marginal gloss, and what he invented himself.
A complete parallel-text comparison of the 1798 and 1817 versions of The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, with the 1817 marginal gloss displayed alongside and changes between versions highlighted throughout.
A playlist bringing together all videos on Coleridge’s Kubla Khan, including readings, analysis of the poem and its preface, and an illustrated reading.
A combined reading and analysis of Hardy’s The Oxen, a Christmas poem exploring nostalgia, lost faith, and the yearning for a simpler rural past.
A combined reading and analysis of Hardy’s The Darkling Thrush, examining its themes of hope and despair at the turn of the century, and the unexpected song of the thrush in a winter landscape.
A combined reading and analysis of Blake’s A Poison Tree, examining its moral allegory about anger, repression, and the destructive consequences of concealed resentment.
A combined reading and analysis of Blake’s Never Seek to Tell Thy Love, a short lyric from Songs of Experience exploring the dangers of repressed and expressed love.
A plain reading of Coleridge’s Kubla Khan, allowing the poem’s visionary language and exotic imagery to speak for itself.