Christabel' : a perspective

The imagination is a unifying force which draws upon the elements of Man's consciousness. Coleridge's poem "Christabel" presents a drama which shows the necessity to the imagination of a unity in the conscious mind, a unity of one's powers of perception and expression. The poem shows a disjunction between the imaginative vision and the imaginative expression. It also shows us what can result when these two facets of the imagination are isolated from each other. The dis-unification which can affect the imagination is of importance to Coleridge. Because it is important to him, this concern is reflected in his work, and in the characters present in this poem.