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Death Be Not Proud

            
             Throughout literature authors tend to write about various topics such as love, lust, and loss. The authors usually express their deepest feelings about these subjects that they usually have come in contact with. John Donne was born in 1572 to Roman Catholic parents. In his early years, he deals with the death of his father. It seems like he deals with the issue of death throughout his life. When he becomes a preacher, his work turns away from love to more serious issues like death. His position as a preacher also influences his outlook on this grim issue. His most celebrated work on death "Death Be Not Proud" is divided into three parts. Death is a phenomenon feared by many and the very thought of it sends shivers through hearts of people. John Donne acts as a literary warrior in refuting this common notion. He is easing the anxiety that society preoccupies itself with. It is interesting that his poem is referenced in other contexts that deal with the same subject. The play "Wit" opens with the main character Vivian Bearing in her doctor's office about to be diagnosed with ovarian cancer. Before this plague, she was a well-respected English professor, but now she is transformed into a lab rat whom we see the process of death incur on. Throughout the play, Vivian reads the poem and the audience watches her emulate the poem itself. The three parts of "Death Be Not Proud" both resemble and differ in Vivian's process of dying. .
             In the first section of the poem, John Donne immediately assaults death. He is directly addressing and attacking death. He tries to belittle death by stating that contrary to popular belief, it is not "mighty and dreadful." His direct attack on death establishes his stance early and parallels Vivian's case. As soon as she hears the news from her doctor, Vivian commits the remaining of her energy to fight the disease that is eventually going to kill her.


Essays Related to Death Be Not Proud

1. Ozymandias and Death Be Not Proud

On the other hand, John Donne's, "Death be not Proud, though some have called thee", addresses the facts that "Death" is not the end of the life but in many ways a new beginning. ... "Penta" because each line of the sonnet could be read in five syllables like: "Death be/ not proud/ though some/ have called/ ed thee" – "Mighty/ and dread/ full, for, thou art/ not so," and so on. ... He believes that death only involves the physical aspects of life and not the spiritual. The poet is saying "Die not, poor death, nor yet canst thou ...

  • Word Count: 951
  • Approx Pages: 4
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

2. Death Be Not Proud

Death Be Not Proud As a religious work, this sermon brings an inner peace and sanctity to the audience. ... 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 These opening stanzas are bold, a very fitting entrance for pride. ... In John Donne's poem, "Death Be Not Proud", also known as Holy Sonnet X, many novel ideas are presented regarding death. ... Death cannot be proud our haughty because mortal men can do exactly what death does, and better...

  • Word Count: 1142
  • Approx Pages: 5
  • Grade Level: High School

3. Death, Be Not Proud

Title of Work: Death, be not proud Author: John Donne John Donne's Death, be not proud is a particularly interesting poem that expresses the act of dying as something natural and pleasant abandoning the reputation it has held for being frightening or powerful. The speaker notes that those whom Death thinks it kills do not truly die and that it will definitely not kill him. ... Drugs and potions can make people sleep as well, or better than Death, so it should not be so proud. ... The author wants those who read Death, be not proud to question Death and how people look at i...

  • Word Count: 755
  • Approx Pages: 3
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

4. Death Be Not Proud and Wit

There are also a great deal of Donne's poems with 'Death Be Not Proud' and 'This is My Playes Last Scene' conveying the theme the most. ... Likewise, John Donne's poem 'Death Be Not Proud' conveys the theme of avoiding the concept of death. The speaker of this poem personifies death, informing it that it isn't intimidating and it cant stop him from doing anything, death be not proud, though some have called thee mighty and dreadful". ... The speaker talks in contradictions, saying that people don't really die when they meet Death "For, those, w...

  • Word Count: 949
  • Approx Pages: 4
  • Grade Level: High School

5. Death Be not Proud

Poetry Explication John Donne's Death Be Not Proud dramatizes the conflict between appearance and reality through the use of rhyme scheme, imagery, and language throughout the poem. ... The speaker tells Death that it should not feel proud although some people have called it "mighty and dreadful" (2). ... In the first quatrain the speaker explains how Death is not powerful. ... This convoluting of syntax also expresses the meaning of this quatrain; that things are not always what they seem. ... The speaker closes this quatrain with an admonition of death asking "why swell'st th...

  • Word Count: 773
  • Approx Pages: 3
  • Grade Level: High School

6. Death

Death, be not Proud This short poem I think deals with the endless subject of death and dying. Donne uses this poem to voice his view that death is not something to be feared as it oftentimes is. ... Donne effectively uses tone in "Death, be not proud" to strengthen the poem's theme. ... In lines 1-2, he says, "Death, be not proud, though some have called thee, Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so". In other words, although many may believe death to be dreadful, he feels this is not so. ...

  • Word Count: 382
  • Approx Pages: 2
  • Grade Level: High School

7. Death

In the two passages "Death be not Proud" and "The Death of Ivan Illych," both Leo Tolstoy and John Donne use various literally techniques in order to show their dissimilar attitudes towards death. ... In "Death be not Proud," by John Donne, Death is even being pitied. ... When he says "Death be not proud" and that shows he is not afraid to stand up to death and shout at it. ... He is trying to convince people that death should not be feared and enlighten them that this is not the end in quote" Death, be not proud, though some have called thee." ... "Die not poor death, nor yet canst thou ki...

  • Word Count: 1035
  • Approx Pages: 4
  • Grade Level: High School

8. Mozart in All His Fine Glory

What a name, but this was not his given Christian name. ... It is a sorrowful thought to know of his early death. ... A proud achievement for any soul I would dare to say. ... In life, death is a companion. ... Mozart and Constanze were the proud parents of six (6) children. ...

  • Word Count: 1703
  • Approx Pages: 7
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

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