John Donne's poem Death, be not Proud, was almost satirical. "Death, be not proud, though some have called thee Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so," (Donne, 971). This quote mocks death as if it were a person. He takes death off his pedistal and exclaims that he has nothing to be proud of.
This quote means that some fear death, however, it is nothing to fear. I believe the author and narrator are Christian. Only people who know that death is actually the gate to an eternal life with God will not fear death. "One short sleep passed, we wake eternally" (Donne, 971). This short sleep is referring to death; after a short time, we awake in God's presence for infinite life.
Death, be not Proud shines a new light on the meaning of death. Instead of being scared of the end of our life, the narrator is excited about crossing over. The narrator chuckles in the face of death and explains that our real life occurs after we die; therefore, death is a good and wonderful thing.
No comments:
Post a Comment