Death, Be Not Proud by John Donne - Poetry Reading

Death, Be Not Proud - A poem by John Donne. About the poem - "Death Be Not Proud" is a poem by English metaphysical poet John Donne, written around 1610 and first published posthumously in 1633. It is the tenth sonnet of Donne's posthumously published Holy Sonnets. The poem is addressed to Death, telling him not to be proud, because death is not to be feared. The poem explains because sleep is a type of death, and that it is pleasurable, then death must be even more so; that death is a slave to fate, chance (accidental death), kings (who have the power of life and death, such as the ability to levy war and command executions), and desperate men. The theme of the poem is generally describing about mortality. The sonnet has an ABBA ABBA CDDC EE rhyming scheme, emblematic of an enclosed rhyme. About the poet - John Donne (19 June 1572 – 31 March 1631) was an English poet, satirist, lawyer. He is considered as the representative of the metaphysical poets. His works are noted for their strong, sensual style and include sonnets, love poetry, religious poems, Latin translations, epigrams, elegies, songs, satires and sermons. His poetry is noted for its vibrancy of language and inventiveness of metaphor, especially compared to that of his contemporaries. For more videos log onto http://www.youtube.com/pearlsofwisdom Also find us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/pearlsofwisdomchannel Subscribe & Stay Tuned - http://www.youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=pearlsofwisdom