Poem #6

Holy Sonnets: Death, be not proud

BY JOHN 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.

      This is a really interesting poem because of what I imagine when reading it. I picture a man who is sort of like a Greek hero and is staring down Death who has come to take him after an epic battle. The dude instead of going willingly insults Death and makes Death feel insignificant… maybe a little human. Even Death can be tames, and this is the one part of life that is guaranteed. This is the end and it claims everything. Death even claims the smartest and the strongest, but the reason for the claiming is what makes death weak. Death has an agenda where he comes to take people when he chooses. Maybe for fun, amusement, out of boredom, or just his will, but in the end Death must feel like he is always in control. Premature death is what compromises his agenda. It is cruel. It lies in the hands of accidents and even the hands of the person who died because they chose to take a premature exit from this life. I sort of love the last few words, “Death, thou shalt die.” The irony and power in them is so strong. Sort of thought provoking… when does death ever cease? What works to contradict and control Death? The obvious answer sounds like life but… life is so fragile, so temporary… and death is so permanent; forever imposing. The beginning of this poem is just as important though, were the speaker says that Death isn’t so scary. It shouldn’t be feared, but more accepted. Death shouldn’t feel as though it is all powerful either, though at the end of the day it does claim the lives… I am not sure if accidents and suicide can be counted as claiming life because Death ends up with the count anyway… Sort of depressing really.