DEATH BE NOT PROUD
JOHN DONNE
MADE BY RONEL MYBURGH
John Donne
Born:1572London, England
Died: March 12 1631
Occupation: Poet
Nationality: English
Genres: Satire, Love poetry, Elegy
Subjects: Love, Sexuality, Religion, Death
Literary movement: Metaphysical Poetry
Influences: William Shakespeare
Influenced:W.B. Yeats, T.S. Eliot, W.H. Auden[1]
MADE BY RONEL MYBURGH
Death be not proudJOHN DONNE
Death be not proud, though some have called thee Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so,For those, whom thou think'st thou dost overthrow,Die not, poor death, nor yet canst thou kill me.From rest and sleep, which but thy pictures be,Much pleasure, then from thee much more must flow,And soonest our best men with thee do go,Rest of their bones, and soul's delivery.Thou art slave to Fate, Chance, kings, and desperate men, And dost with poison, war, and sickness dwell.And poppy or charms can make us sleep as well.And better than thy stroke; why swell'st thou then? One short sleep past, we wake eternally,And death shall be no more; death, thou shalt die.
MADE BY RONEL MYBURGH
MADE BY RONEL MYBURGH
THE FOLLOWING EXTRACT FROM THE SCRIPTURES:
"Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed - in a flash,
in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet . . . . then the saying
that is written will come true: 'Death has been swallowed up in victory.
Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?'
The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.
But thanks be to God! He gives us victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."
1 Corinthians 15: 51-57 MADE BY RONEL MYBURGH
Structure of the poem Italian or Petrarchan Sonnet in structure In terms of ideas the poem is divided into three
quatrains and a couplet – Shakespearian. Poem consists of octave and sestet. Arrangement of sestet is unusual since it
consists of a quatrain and a couplet. The couplet is spoiled by impure rhyme:
eternally and die Rhyme scheme:
a b b a a b b a c d d c e eMADE BY RONEL MYBURGH
Theme: Death is powerless – a
passing moment in time before man achieves eternal life.
Death is personified as a hateful person whom the poet dislikes.
MADE BY RONEL MYBURGH
Death be not proud, though some have called thee
Line 1
The poet addresses
death directly
Death has nothing to boast / brag about
It is implied that only a small number of unknown people call death dreadful
It has happened in the past and will still happen in future.
MADE BY RONEL MYBURGH
Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so,
Line 2
MADE BY RONEL MYBURGH
For those, whom thou think'st thou dost overthrow,
Line 3
MADE BY RONEL MYBURGH
Die not, poor death, nor yet canst thou kill me.
Line 4
Tone of contempt –
Sarcastic exclamation in a
Mock-sympathetic tone
MADE BY RONEL MYBURGH
From rest and sleep, which but thy pictures be,
Line 5
MADE BY RONEL MYBURGH
Much pleasure,
then from thee much more must flow,
Line 6
MADE BY RONEL MYBURGH
And soonest our best men with thee do go,
Line 7
MADE BY RONEL MYBURGH
Rest of their bones, and soul's delivery.
Line 8
MADE BY RONEL MYBURGH
Thou art slave to Fate, Chance, kings, and desperate men,
Line 9
What causes death? People die because of sickness. Or maybe a murderer kills them. Or perhaps a tyrannical king decrees a death sentence. In all of these cases, Death has no option but to come along and claim the victim. Death therefore has no freedom. Death is simply a slave to things like Fate, etc.
MADE BY RONEL MYBURGH
And dost with poison, war, and sickness dwell.
Line 10
MADE BY RONEL MYBURGH
And poppy or charms can make us sleep as well.
Line 11When a certain species of poppy seeds is crushed, it produces a paste called opium which, when heated, gives off a smoke that produces a wonderfully peaceful hallucinatory sleep.
MADE BY RONEL MYBURGH
And better than thy stroke; why swell'st thou then?
Line 12
Why do you have such high opinion of yourself? (puffed up with pride)
MADE BY RONEL MYBURGH
One short sleep past, we wake eternally,
Line 13
MADE BY RONEL MYBURGH
And death shall be no more; death, thou shalt die.
Line 14
"You will go" means a wish or an intention, that you will go unless something stops you whereas "you shall go" is a command rather than a wish, meaning that nothing will get in the way of your going! "Death, thou shalt die" therefore is a command. Nothing will get in the way of Death's demise . Death will die and there is no further argument about it! There is no question about it!
MADE BY RONEL MYBURGH
MADE BY RONEL MYBURGH
MADE BY RONEL MYBURGH
Tone:
Hostile Contemptuous
Mood: Mocking Challenging
MADE BY RONEL MYBURGH
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