"Sonnet X", also known by its opening words as "Death Be Not Proud", is a fourteen-line poem, or sonnet, by English poet John Donne (1572–1631), one of the leading figures in the metaphysical poets group of seventeenth-century English literature. Written between February and August 1609, it was first published posthumously in 1633.
It is included as one of the nineteen sonnets that comprise Donne's Holy Sonnets or Divine Meditations, among his best-known works. Most editions number the poem as the tenth in the sonnet sequence, which follows the order of poems in the Westmoreland Manuscript (c. 1620), the most complete arrangement of the cycle, discovered in the late nineteenth century. However, two editions published shortly after Donne's death include the sonnets in a different order, where this poem appears as eleventh in the Songs and Sonnets (published 1633) and sixth in Divine Meditations (published 1635).
"Death Be Not Proud" presents an argument against the power of death. Addressing Death as a person, the speaker warns Death against pride in his power. Such power is merely an illusion, and the end Death thinks it brings to men and women is in fact a rest from world-weariness for its alleged "victims." The poet criticizes Death as a slave to other forces: fate, chance, kings, and desperate men. Death is not in control, for a variety of other powers exercise their volition in taking lives. Even in the rest it brings, Death is inferior to drugs. Finally, the speaker predicts the end of Death itself, stating "Death, thou shalt die."
Death be not proud, though some have called thee Mighty and dreadfull, for, thou art not soe, For, those, whom thou think'st, thou dost overthrow, Die not, poore death, nor yet canst thou kill mee. From rest and sleepe, which but thy pictures bee, Much pleasure, then from thee, much more must flow, And soonest our best men with thee doe goe, Rest of their bones, and souls deliverie. Thou art slave to Fate, Chance, kings, and desperate men, And dost with poyson, warre, and sicknesse dwell, And poppie, or charmes can make us sleepe as well, And better than thy stroake; why swell'st thou then? One short sleepe past, wee wake eternally, And death shall be no more; death, thou shalt die.[1]
Donne had a major illness that brought him close to death during his eighth year as an Anglican minister. The illness may have been typhoid fever, but in recent years it has been shown that he may have had a relapsing fever in combination with other illnesses.
The sonnet has an ABBA ABBA CDDC EE rhyme scheme ("eternalLY" is meant to rhyme with "DIE").
The last line alludes to 1 Corinthians 15:26: "The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death".
The poem's opening words are echoed in a contemporary poem, "Death be not proud, thy hand gave not this blow", sometimes attributed to Donne, but more likely by his patron Lucy Harington Russell, Countess of Bedford.
Death Be Not Proud public domain audiobook at LibriVox
December 15, 2023
death, proud, memoir, john, gunther, book, sonnet, also, known, opening, words, fourteen, line, poem, sonnet, english, poet, john, donne, 1572, 1631, leading, figures, metaphysical, poets, group, seventeenth, century, english, literature, written, between, feb. For the memoir by John Gunther see Death Be Not Proud book Sonnet X also known by its opening words as Death Be Not Proud is a fourteen line poem or sonnet by English poet John Donne 1572 1631 one of the leading figures in the metaphysical poets group of seventeenth century English literature Written between February and August 1609 it was first published posthumously in 1633 Sonnet X Death be not proud by John DonnePortrait of John DonneWrittenbetween February and August 1609First published inSongs and Sonnets 1633 CountryKingdom of EnglandSeriesHoly SonnetsSubject s Christianity Mortality Resurrection Eternal LifeGenre s religious poetry devotional poetryFormSonnetRhyme schemeABBA ABBA CDDCEELines14It is included as one of the nineteen sonnets that comprise Donne s Holy Sonnets or Divine Meditations among his best known works Most editions number the poem as the tenth in the sonnet sequence which follows the order of poems in the Westmoreland Manuscript c 1620 the most complete arrangement of the cycle discovered in the late nineteenth century However two editions published shortly after Donne s death include the sonnets in a different order where this poem appears as eleventh in the Songs and Sonnets published 1633 and sixth in Divine Meditations published 1635 Death Be Not Proud presents an argument against the power of death Addressing Death as a person the speaker warns Death against pride in his power Such power is merely an illusion and the end Death thinks it brings to men and women is in fact a rest from world weariness for its alleged victims The poet criticizes Death as a slave to other forces fate chance kings and desperate men Death is not in control for a variety of other powers exercise their volition in taking lives Even in the rest it brings Death is inferior to drugs Finally the speaker predicts the end of Death itself stating Death thou shalt die Contents 1 Poem 2 Influence on other works 3 References 4 Sources 5 Further reading 6 External linksPoem edit Holy Sonnet X Death be not proud though some have called thee Mighty and dreadfull for thou art not soe For those whom thou think st thou dost overthrow Die not poore death nor yet canst thou kill mee From rest and sleepe which but thy pictures bee Much pleasure then from thee much more must flow And soonest our best men with thee doe goe Rest of their bones and souls deliverie Thou art slave to Fate Chance kings and desperate men And dost with poyson warre and sicknesse dwell And poppie or charmes can make us sleepe as well And better than thy stroake why swell st thou then One short sleepe past wee wake eternally And death shall be no more death thou shalt die 1 Donne had a major illness that brought him close to death during his eighth year as an Anglican minister The illness may have been typhoid fever but in recent years it has been shown that he may have had a relapsing fever in combination with other illnesses The sonnet has an ABBA ABBA CDDC EE rhyme scheme eternalLY is meant to rhyme with DIE The last line alludes to 1 Corinthians 15 26 The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death The poem s opening words are echoed in a contemporary poem Death be not proud thy hand gave not this blow sometimes attributed to Donne but more likely by his patron Lucy Harington Russell Countess of Bedford Influence on other works editDeath Be Not Proud 1949 by John Gunther is a memoir of his son s struggle with and ultimately death from a brain tumor In the Pulitzer Prize winning play Wit by Margaret Edson and the film adaptation with Emma Thompson the sonnet plays a central role References edit Donne John 1912 Grierson Herbert J C ed The Poems of John Donne Vol 1 London Oxford University Press p 326 Sources editSchaper Arthur Poetry Analysis Death Be Not Proud By John Donne Classical Poets 2013 Accessed 24 February 2020 Further reading editJohn Donne Devotions upon Emergent Occasions ed by Anthony Raspa Montreal McGill Queen s University Press 1975 xii xiv Charles M Coffin s ed Donne s poetry The Complete Poetry and Selected Prose of John Donne New York The Modern Library 1952External links edit nbsp Wikisource has original text related to this article Death be not proud Death Be Not Proud in Representative Poetry Online http www cummingsstudyguides net Guides3 DeathBe html http www poets org viewmedia php prmMID 15836 nbsp Death Be Not Proud public domain audiobook at LibriVox Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Death Be Not Proud amp oldid 1184002496, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
