
Originally Posted by
E.M. Forster, The Treasures of Darkness: A History of Mesopotamian Religion
Before we begin to read the Ancient Mariner we know that the Polar Seas are not inhabited by spirits, and that if a man shoots an albatross he is not a criminal but a sportsman, and that if he stuffs the albatross afterwards he becomes a naturalist also. All this is common knowledge, but when we are reading the Ancient Mariner or remembering it intensely, common knowledge disappears and uncommon knowledge takes place. We have entered a universe that only answers to its own laws, supports itself, internally coheres, and has a new standard of truth