'' '' is a poem by Samuel Taylor Coleridge which takes its title from the Mongol / Chinese Emperor Kublai Khan , of the Yuan Dynasty . Coleridge claimed that it was written in the autumn of 1797 at a farmhouse near Exmoor , but it may have been composed on one of a number of other visits to the farm. It may also have been revised a number of times before it was first published in 1816 .
Coleridge claimed that the poem was inspired by an Opium -induced dream (implicit in the poem's subtitle ''A Vision in a Dream''), but that the composition was interrupted by the Person From Porlock . This claim seems unlikely, as most opium users have tremendous difficulty recalling dreams when opium was ingested just prior to sleeping. Some have speculated that the vivid imagery of the poem stems from a waking Hallucination , albeit most likely opium-induced.
There is widespread speculation on the poem's meaning, some suggesting the author merely is portraying his vision while others insist on a theme or purpose. Some critics see it as a metaphor for sexual intercourse. Others believe it is a poem stressing the beauty of creation.
The full text is reproduced here , along with the famous note with which it was accompanied when first published, as well as a marginal note on an original manuscript copy in Coleridge's own hand, and a quote from William Bartram which is believed to have been a source of the poem.
- While whisking Harold Shea and friends away to adventures in Orlando Furioso , L. Sprague De Camp and Fletcher Pratt briefly left them in a Parallel Universe that was the setting of Kubla Khan.
- The plot of '' Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency '', a novel by Douglas Adams , is closely tied with Coleridge's poem, in a way that is obscure until the end of the book.
- As Kane's palatial mansion is named '' Xanadu '', the opening lines also appear in the film Citizen Kane .
- The opening lines (slightly paraphrased) were also used by the 1980s UK band Frankie Goes To Hollywood and was the basis for the title track of their first '' Welcome To The Pleasuredome ''.
- The song Mega Bottle Ride off of Joe Strummer And The Mescaleros ' 2001 album Global A Go-Go makes reference to the poem, speaking of being "in the discosphere like Kubla Khan."
- An edited version of the poem appears inside the front cover of the novel ''Descent From Xanadu'', by Harold Robbins .
- The Rush song '' Xanadu '' is also based on the poem.
- The 1999 computer game Alpha Centauri uses the last lines of the poem in discussing the "Paradise Garden" base facility.
- David Graham's apocalyptic Science Fiction book '' Down To A Sunless Sea '' is explicitly named for a phrase from this poem.
- Ted Nelson's Project Xanadu Hypertext System was named in honor of the poem.
- There is speculation that the Quantum computer or program X.A.N.A. of the animated series '' Code Lyoko '' is a reference to Xanadu.
- The Xanadu Beach Resort and Marina was built in Freeport, on Grand Bahama Island, Bahamas . Its opening in 1969 was attended by Frank Sinatra , Sammy Davis Jr. , Cary Grant , David Merrick , and royalty from all over the world. The resort was purchased in the mid-1970s by the eccentric millionaire recluse Howard Hughes . He continued to reside in the Penthouse "C" suite with a full staff of attendees. His shadowy personage and the resort's slip into obscurity echo Coleridge's mysterious poem.
- , directed by Stanley Kubrick , described his experience in the following parody: ''For MGM did Kubrick Stan/A stately astrodome decree/While Art the science writer ran/Through plots incredible to man/In search of solvency.'' He claimed to remember only fragments of further verses, such as ''Child star wailing for its demon mother.''
- '' Xanadu '' was also the name of a 1980 film featuring Olivia Newton John and Gene Kelly . While the movie was considered a flop on its initial release, the soundtrack album "went multi-platinum" and the film itself retains a "cult" status.
- A large column in Kartchner Caverns takes its name from the poem. The cavern itself was given the nick-name Xanadu by its discoverers as a means of discussing the cave in public as not to attract potential vandals.
- Tom Sharpe 's 1980 novel '' Ancestral Vices '' (''sic'') takes its title from a line in the poem ''... ancestral voices prophesying war''.
- Greg Bear 's 1984 novel '' The Infinity Concerto '' incorporates this poem into it's plot.
- A Minneapolis (MN) based piano rock group.
- Referenced in '' as a conclusion.
- In the animated television series Gargoyles , ''Xanadu'' is the name of the upstate retreat owned by David Xanatos .
- ''Kubla Khan'' inspired the creators of the Xanadu House in the 1980 s to name it ''Xanadu''.
- Indie legends Pavement named their debut album Slanted And Enchanted after a rhyme in Kubla Khan.
- In the Seinfeld episode ''The Voice'', Jerry Seinfeld refers to George Costanza's private restroom at Play Now as Xanadu.
- The last four lines of the poem are recited by Doc Holiday in the film "Tombstone".
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