Is it possible to read ‘Christabel’
as an allegorical poem? Substantiate with textual references.
Coleridge’s Christabel is an allegorical
poem about the conflict between good and evil. Christabel is good; Geraldine is
evil. Geraldine has appeared at the castle with the obvious intention of
drawing Christabel into evil, perhaps, it is implied, through a sexual
seduction.
Early in the poem, the forces on both sides of the conflict are
clearly lined up. Christabel has her faith, as expressed in her prayers to God
and to the Virgin Mary. Moreover, she has a spiritual guardian in her dead
mother as well as an earthly guardian in her beloved father.
Although Geraldine does not actually call upon satanic powers,
it is clear that she has their skills. Like the biblical serpent, she is a
deceiver. She can invent plausible lies; she can feign goodness; and, as
Coleridge’s projected continuation suggests, she can appear in any guise, even
that of another living person.
The reason that Geraldine is so successful in deceiving
Christabel and Sir Leoline is that she appeals to the very vulnerability of
virtue. Because she has been taught to be compassionate toward others,
Christabel pities Geraldine. The fact that Geraldine seems to be another girl
of high rank, almost a second self, makes Christabel’s action even more
predictable............................................................................................................................
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