Christabel

poem by Coleridge

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Article History

Christabel, unfinished Gothic ballad by Samuel Taylor Coleridge, first published in Christabel; Kubla Khan, A Vision; The Pains of Sleep (1816). The first part of the poem was written in 1797, the second in 1800. In it Coleridge aimed to show how naked energy might be redeemed through contact with a spirit of innocent love.

Christabel is the innocent, virtuous daughter of Sir Leoline. While praying in the woods at night for her fiancé, she finds Geraldine, a lady in distress whom she takes home to her father’s castle. Geraldine says that she is the daughter of Lord Roland de Vaux, once a friend of Sir Leoline before the two men quarreled, and claims to have been kidnapped. In truth, however, she is an evil supernatural creature disguised as Geraldine. Christabel penetrates her deception but is forced into silence by magic. When she finally speaks, Sir Leoline rejects her entreaty, and the narrative ends with Sir Leoline sending a message telling Lord Roland that his daughter is safe and offering reconciliation.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Kathleen Kuiper.