It is an ancient ....... stopp'st thou me? | The Rime of the Ancient Mariner By S.T. Coleridge | Eureka Study Aids

It is an ancient Mariner,
And he stoppeth one of three.
'By thy long grey beard and glittering eye,
Now wherefore stopp'st thou me?

It is an ancient ......... stopp'st thou me?

Reference
(i) Poem: The Rime of the Ancient Mariner
(ii) Poet: Samuel Taylor Coleridge
Context
(i) Occurrence: Part I (Lines 1-4/626)

(ii) Content: An ancient Mariner detains a Wedding Guest to narrate the story of a sailor. During a voyage, the sailor kills an albatross. This crime invites sufferings. After much suffering, he understands the oneness of God's creation and blesses the water snakes. This marks the breaking of the curse. However, the avenging spirit imposes a heavy penance on him. Finally the ship sinks and the sailor is saved in a pilot's boat. Ever since that day, the sailor rooms from land to land to relate his story. 

Explanation

     In these lines the poet describes the Mariner's detaining a guest on his way to a wedding. The Mariner is the central figure of the poem. There is a strange sense of mystery about him. It is not proper to use "it is" when referring to a human being. However, Coleridge uses the phrase to introduce his Mariner has the effect of transforming him from a man of flesh and blood into something akin to a force of nature. The word 'ancient' conveys the two-fold sense of 'old' and 'of old time'. The Mariner stops one of the three Wedding Guests. The number 'three' is one of the numbers to which a mystical or supernatural significance has been attached. The main features of this Mariner are his grey beard and glittering eyes. The grizzled beard shows the old age of the Mariner. However, his glittering eyes are hypnotic. He holds the attention of the Wedding Guest with his eyes. The Wedding Guest asks him why he is detaining him. The protest of the Wedding Guest is truly dramatic and introduces and element of action.