Tomorrow I’m taking the GRE Subject Test in Literature and I admit I’m scared out of my mind. I only wish that I could have the same ability of remembering famous texts as I do with music. Or maybe if artists could create more songs about famous works that would be great. Of course I don’t doubt that there must be many songs based on the classics, but unfortunately I haven’t been able to find them just yet. I have however found two songs that are based on the works of Samuel Taylor Coleridge.
For those of you who don’t know, Samuel Taylor Coleridge was an English poet who was one of the main writers of the Romantic Movement during the 18th century. 
His most famous work is titled “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner”. In this poem, a sailor stops a wedding guest to narrate the story of his long voyage. During his voyage, the sailor killed an albatross, a bird that the other sailors believed was bringing them good luck. By killing it the sailor brought bad luck amongst them and as his punishment he had to wear the dead albatross across his neck. When studying this poem, my professor mentioned that there are various interpretations of it. There’s the Christian views of sin, penance, and redemption, the Pantheistic view of the violation of life, others depict it as a portrayal of mere chance and luck, while others understand that it’s really just a way of saying that everything happens for a reason. Also, it is from this poem that the famous idiom “albatross around your neck” comes from. Like in the poem, it means that one has a heavy burden that becomes difficult to deal with and interferes with one’s success.
So, it is from this poem that the song “Weight of Living Part 1” by Bastille comes from. As in the poem, the song deals with the heavy burden of carrying one’s problems and mistakes, and in the chorus it emphasizes the act of shooting the albatross down when one can’t take it anymore. What I mostly love about the song is that for me it goes along with the view that everything happens for a reason. We will always be carrying our problems and our faults. Sometimes the weight of living is too heavy to deal with and that’s why one has to take a leap of faith and shoot down that burden no matter the consequences.
Another song is based on Coleridge’s poem “Christabel”. The song is by Dems and it’s titled the same.
In this poem, Christabel encounters another female in the woods, Geraldine, who says she was abducted from her home. Christabel pities her and brings her to her own home not noticing the signs warning her that it was not a good idea. They both spend the night together where Christabel notices a strange mark in Geraldine’s body. As “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner”, this poem also deals with the supernatural and with the Christian and Pantheistic views. As to the song, it seems to narrate the poem in a more story-like manner and also the video seems to represent a modern version of the poem.
I love both of these songs, and the fact that they come from works of literature for me is just fascinating. I only wish that I could find more of these to help me remember the classics. I’ll never forget either of these poems thanks to Bastille and Dems. So, I hope artists take note and start writing about literature. 😛
If any of you happen to know any songs based on famous works, please let me know!
Here are the songs.
I’ve also included the links of the poems if you’re interested in reading them. 😉
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner & Christabel
Have a musical weekend, my friends. (Wish me luck for tomorrow 
)
Until our next song,
Your Music Enthusiast ♫
The Little Writing Factory 