Questions to consider:
- What is being personified in the first poem?
- How does the speaker feel about death in the first poem?
- The second poem wasn't at first a poem, but a section from Donne's "Meditation XVII." It therefore does not have a strict structure like the "Holy Sonnet." What effect does this have?
- What allusion is being made when Donne references the "bells tolling"?
- What extended metaphor is Donne using in "For Whom the Bell Tolls"?
Holy Sonnet X: Death Be Not Proud
Death, be not proud, though some have callèd 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 yet thy pictures be,
Much pleasure, then from thee much more, must low
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.
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 yet thy pictures be,
Much pleasure, then from thee much more, must low
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.
For Whom the Bell Tolls
No man is an island,
Entire of itself.
Each is a piece of the continent,
A part of the main.
If a clod be washed away by the sea,
Europe is the less.
As well as if a promontory were.
As well as if a manner of thine own
Or of thine friend's were.
Each man's death diminishes me,
For I am involved in mankind.
Therefore, send not to know
For whom the bell tolls,
It tolls for thee.
Entire of itself.
Each is a piece of the continent,
A part of the main.
If a clod be washed away by the sea,
Europe is the less.
As well as if a promontory were.
As well as if a manner of thine own
Or of thine friend's were.
Each man's death diminishes me,
For I am involved in mankind.
Therefore, send not to know
For whom the bell tolls,
It tolls for thee.
Jamal Thompson: I think that the first poem is personifying death. It is saying that death is something not so powerful and is not so scary in the eyes of the person who wrote it. In the second poem, it delivers a feeling of isolation, "If a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less." It also gives a sense of moaring for a death because he says "Each man's death Diminishes me." Both of these poems says something about death.
ReplyDeleteShanice Mosley - My responce to the first poem:
ReplyDeleteThis is a very touchy topic: DEATH. He wrote as if he died and came back to tell us all how it was. No one really knows what death is like or going to be like untill we experience it. Peaceful we all hope it to be, but what if it is not? Who is he to tell us true or false? I enjoyed reading the poem and all it's hopefulness, but we can only take it as far as we may.
April 26, 2011 9:21 AM
shanice; i feel that you have a valid point. i feel like although the poem is about death its kind of a piece to uplift and kind of inspire people to not fear death. death is the end of life but one cant truly live if they are in constant fear of dying...Jasmine Dubose
ReplyDeleteDeliet D: I agree with Shanice and Jamal about the first poem. The speaker in the Death poem is trying to say that everyone else thinks that Death is some powerful thing that puts fear in the hearts of others but the speaker disagrees. He seems unafraid of Death and in a way challenges it.
ReplyDelete@ Jamal: I like that you have connected Donne’s poem with a common motif, which is death. To add to your interpretation, I believe the bell tolls for “thee” because those who choose to be islands await death. We are interdependent, and cannot exist without each other.
ReplyDelete@ Shanice: I respect that you have resisted Donne’s opinion that Death is not to be feared as we would normally consider it. I also think it is interesting that you interpreted it to be an indirect message to the readers. I thought of it more as a direct conversation with Death, telling him to humble himself because he is not as powerful as he believes.
@Burton
ReplyDeleteI liked Shanice's post also. However, i feel as though death is going to be peaceful, not to the physical body, but to the spiritual body. It puts an end to wordly things and soul lives on. When i read it, I also thought he was talkin directing with Death, but now I seee it through a different set of eyes after looking at Shanice's response. Well Done!
@burton's comment to shanice's poem; i also agree i feel like the poem is holding a direct convo with death but as i said before i thought it was more a inspirational message to everyone to not fear death so much.
ReplyDelete