“Opium is a maelstrom — the deeper I descend into the storm, the more I see the danger; but the further I go, the more I’m pulled — there’s nothing I can do but die …”

 

The Resurrection of Samuel

Taylor Coleridge

30 minutes  ·  3 men

Coleridge was a major poet, philosopher, and theologian in 19th century England. This play depicts him and his friend Charles Lamb at a time when Coleridge’s life was falling apart due to his opium addiction. Coleridge emerges from his drug-induced misery to deliver an impassioned lecture, ostensibly about “Romeo and Juliet,” but really about his own struggle with suicidal thoughts and his will to live and overcome his suffering.