KUBLA KHAN or A VISION IN A DREAM
SAMUEL TAYLOR COLERIDGE - 1797/1798
This visionary poem is one of the most famous poems of the Romantic Period. A manuscript copy of COLERIDGE'S "fragmentary vision" is a permanent exhibit at the British Museum (London).
The poem contrasts a man-made, earthly paradise, which proves unable to resist demonic forces and is doomed to be annihilated, with a "true" form of Paradise.
This theme is connected with the themes of the "commanding genius" and the "absolute genius"[BEER, p. 165; see BIBLIOGRAPHY] Kubla aspires to break eternal rules by decreeing heaven on earth, whereas the reign of the dominating figure of the last part of the poem is a legitimate and lasting one and remains unchallenged by dark powers.
"How far drugs contributed to the calling up of dreamlike and nightmarish atmospheres" [BLAMIRES, p. 281] is a question frequently raised in connection with this poetic vision (cf modern "psychedelic art").
I hope the detailed......
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