Holy Sonnets: Death, be not proud
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.
Italian Petrarchan Sonnet
Rhyme Scheme:
abba abba cddc ae
Donne uses a traditional Petrarchan rhyme scheme
but changes it up in the couplet. Instead of the traditional "ee" rhyme scheme, he uses "ae" by rhyming "eternally" (line 13) with "thee" (line 1). Perhaps he chooses to alter the traditional rhyme scheme to show that even something set in stone - such as death or a rhyme scheme - can be altered or changed. Since Donne is telling Death it is not powerful, he must show some power of his own and he does this by changing the rhyme scheme to what he wants it to be.
Octave (lines 1-8)
Donne commands Death to
swallow its pride. He accuses death of taking the
best men and informs Death that it cannot take
him.
Volta (line 9)
Donne informs Death that it is simply a "slave" to
other things. He is attempting to make Death seem weak
and dependent on other things.
Sestet (lines 9-14)
Donne transitions into a religious meaning in the Sestet. He compares death to other things that could make him sleep, therefore making death seem less powerful. He mentions eternal life in the couplet as well as the idea that Death will die when eternal life begins.
Punctuation
Octave:
Death, be not proud, though some have called theeMighty and dreadful, for thou art not so;For those whom thou think'st thou dost overthrowDie 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.
The punctuation in the octave creates two long sentences. The enjambment at the end of line 1 creates a sense of suspense for what will come next in line 2. At the end of line 1, the reader looks forward to finding out what some have called Death. The comma after "Mighty and dreaful" in line 2 lets the reader pause and reflect on those two words that describe Death. The semi-colon indicates that Donne's point is not yet made and encourages the reader to continue on. There is no punctuation in the next line. It is as if Donne just cannot wait to get his point out. Enjambment brings the reader to the next line and the comma's around "poor Death" (line 4) indicate an apostrophe, or Donne directly addressing Death. The period at the end of line 4 is the end of the first sentence. It ends the sentence on a strong and firm note since Donne is firm in his belief that Death cannot and will not kill him. Line 5 is divided nicely by commas and a semi-colon in line 6 makes the reader focus on the words "Much pleasure." The next couple lines finish out the sentence with a few commas in between. The octave ends with a period, again ending the second sentence just as strongly as the first.
Sestet:
The first couple of lines contain several commas. Donne is trying to list the numerous things that Death is a slave to and he is also trying to list with what other things Death is grouped with. The enjambment in line 11 shows one of Donne's main points, that Death is no more powerful than things like "poppy or charms." Donne asks Death one question throughout the entire poem - in line 12 just before he presents his final point. This shows that Donne is not expecting an answer from Death and indicates that since Donne does not care what Death has to say, he feels he has outsmarted Death. The enjambment in line 13 represents the continuation of life through death since the line continues through the end of the poem. Donne's final statement, "Death, thou shalt die" stands alone. Certainly Donne wanted to make this a strong imperative phrase.
Capitalization
Death is capitalized throughout the poem
since it is being addressed. Donne addresses
Death as if it is a human. He does this to show
that he as a human is powerful enough to talk to and command Death; therefore, Death is no more powerful than a human being and like a human being, it too will die.
Demeaning Diction to Describe Death
- "not proud" (line 1).
- not "Mighty and dreadful" (line 2).
- "slave to fate, chance, kings, and desperate men" (line 9).
- "with poison, war, and sickness dwell" (line 10).
- "Death, thou shalt die" (line 14).
Imperative Diction to Command Death
- "Death, be not proud" (line 1).
- "nor yet canst thou kill me" (line 4).
- "Thou art slave..." (line 9).
- "Death, thou shalt die" (line 14).
By using words to demean, belittle, command, and condemn Death, Donne establishes authority over Death and attempts to tell Death that it is nothing but a slave to other things and can never win over eternal life. Donne shows the reader that Death is not as "mighty and dreadful" as it seems.
Alliteration
"For those whom thou think'st thou dost overthrow" (line 3).
"then from thee much more must flow" (line 6).
"One short sleep past" (line 13).
Donne uses alliteration to catch the attention of both Death and the reader. He is making sure that Death listens to each and every one of his words.
Irony
"Death, thou shalt die" (line 14).
Donne uses irony when he commands death itself to die. If death itself were tie die, it would take away all the power death has since it would no longer exist. Donne is suggesting the idea of eternal life in heaven by telling Death that it will die when eternal life begins.
Death Imagery
"Mighty and dreadful" (line 2)
"slave to fate, chance, kings, and desperate men" (line 9).
"with poison, war, and sickness dwell" (line 10).
"death shall be no more; Death, thou shalt die" (line 14).
Eternal Life Imagery
"From rest and sleep, which but thy pictures be" (line 5).
"Rest of their bones, and soul's delivery" (line 8).
"And poppy or charms can make us sleep as well" (line 11).
"one short sleep past, we wake eternally" (line 13).
Donne makes sure to stress death imagery throughout the poem in order to identify Death with negative things. However, he also uses the opposite with eternal life imagery. He transitions from the word "death" to the words "sleep" and "rest" as if he is redefining Death as something that is not permanent. In line 13, he uses the phrase, "we wake eternally" to show the triumph of eternal life over death.
Interpretation and Meaning
Donne, as a religious and faithful man, felt the need to address the subject of Death. It is something that keeps many people from believing in a God or in an afterlife because it is so mysterious and unknown. Donne is obviously a firm believer in eternal life as demonstrated through this poem. He seems angry and annoyed at Death for taking credit and acting powerful when it truly is not powerful at all. He insists that there is more that must come from death; there is more it must offer to the human soul than just an end to earthy life. At the end of the poem, Donne states that we eventually wake and enter eternal life. Therefore, death ends. He strongly states that "death shall be no more" and commands Death to die. This poem not only shows Donne's strong faith and belief in an after life, but it also offers hope to readers of the poem. Donne obviously wanted to put this poem out there to offer redemption to others as well.
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 wellAnd better than thy stroke; why swell'st thou then?One short sleep past, we wake eternallyAnd death shall be no more; Death, thou shalt die.
Diction
Structure
Imagery