“Kubla Khan” is a Product of Romanticism/Sheer Fancy/Dream Poem- Discuss.
"Kubla Khan" is a notable literary work by Samuel Taylor Coleridge. A complete discussion of this literary work is given, which will help you enhance your literary skills and prepare for the exam. Read the Main texts, Key info, Summary, Themes, Characters, Literary devices, Quotations, Notes, and various study materials of "Kubla Khan".
Answer
“Kubla Khan is a product of sheer fancy/dream poem/product of romanticism.”—Discuss.
T. Coleridge’s (1772-1834) poem “Kubla Khan” (1816) is one of the most famous examples of a dream poem and a work of Romantic imagination. The poem is not just about a dream—it feels like a dream itself. The poem is subtitled as “A Vision in a Dream” and “A Fragment.” “Kubla Khan” contains key features of Romantic poetry—fantasy, imagination, nature, and mystery. In this discussion, we will see how “Kubla Khan” is a dream poem/a work of sheer fancy/a true product of Romanticism.
Dream Poem: Coleridge claimed he wrote “Kubla Khan” after waking up from a vivid dream. He had taken opium and fallen asleep while reading about Kubla Khan, the Mongol emperor. In his sleep, he imagined a fantastical palace, rivers, forests, and music. When he woke up, he hurried to write down the images, but his flow was interrupted by a visitor. The poem remained unfinished, like a half-remembered dream. The poem feels broken and mysterious—as if parts of the dream slipped away.
A Fragment: Another reason “Kubla Khan” feels like a dream is that it is unfinished and disjointed. Coleridge himself described the poem as “a fragment.” The poem moves from one image to another without explaining the connection between them.
The poem starts with the emperor ordering a “stately pleasure-dome” to be built in Xanadu. Suddenly, the poem shifts to describing a wild river flowing through underground caves into a “sunless sea.” Next, we see a creepy (weird) chasm, forests, and a woman wailing for her “demon-lover.” In the final stanza, the speaker remembers a vision of a woman playing music:
“A damsel with a dulcimer
In a vision once I saw:”
These sudden shifts make the poem feel unpredictable, like a dream where scenes change without logic.
Surreal Images from Imagination: In the poem, the descriptions/images are surreal (like something from a dream). We see a pleasure dome, gardens,Unlock this study guide now