This definitive collection gathers the poetic and dramatic output of Samuel Taylor Coleridge, providing the general reader and the scholar with an authoritative text based upon the final edition of eighteen thirty-four. The materials are arranged as far as possible in chronological order, spanning from the early juvenilia composed at Christ's Hospital to the mature metaphysical meditations of his later years. The first volume encompasses the poems, including such landmarks as The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Christabel, and Kubla Khan, alongside numerous alternative versions and notebook fragments first rescued from obscurity by dedicated editors. The commentary and textual footnotes reveal the meticulous self-criticism of an artificer who constantly polished his creations, treating words with the precision of a philosopher.
The second volume is dedicated to the dramatic works, featuring historical dramas and tragedies such as Remorse and the translation of Schiller's Wallenstein trilogy, demonstrating the breadth of a writer who bridged poetry, metaphysics, and theology. Throughout these pages, the reader witnesses the transition from the exuberant revolutionary fervor of his youth to a profound spiritual and intellectual maturity. The collection serves not merely as a monument of British literature, but as a laboratory of poetic craftsmanship, illustrating the growth of a mind that sought to unite imagination with the rigorous demands of truth.
