Death Be Not Proud Summary

In John Donne’s “Death Be Not Proud”, the speaker questions the mightiness of Death. He argues with Death and tries to prove the powerlessness of Death.

At first, he compares Death with rest and sleep that induce pleasure in men and later he says death is nothing but a slave to fate, chance, kings, desperate men, etc. He also argues that if death brings pleasure to the man then a drug like poppy can provide more pleasure to men than death. Finally, he concludes the sonnet that after death man wakes eternally and there will be no death.

Death Be Not proud Analysis

The sonnet “Death Be Not Proud” is set in conversational mode like “The Sun Rising”. Like the mighty sun is personified in “The Sun Rising” here death is also personified as a person and reduced to a powerless man, slave.

At the beginning of the sonnet, the speaker addresses Death and tells him that not to feel proud about his status.

He tries to contradict the generally accepted notions of death. When someone’s end moment arrives, it does neither wait nor listen to anyone or anything. No power of the universe can stand against death. Therefore death is called powerful.

Death takes everything away from a person’s life; his time, his memories. In a nutshell, Death brings a full stop to his existence. Death brings sadness to people’s lives and death is the ugly truth of man’s life that no one can deny. Therefore death is perceived as a terrible moment in man’s life.

Despite these common notions of death as being mighty and terrible the speaker argues that these claims are false. He addresses Death and tells him that not to be proud of these claims. The speaker asserts that death is neither mighty nor dreadful.

It is again commonly accepted that among men that death overthrow man. Death pulls down man’s time from him by force and man can’t do anything about it.

The speaker says that those whom he thinks that he overthrows, in reality, don’t die. Here he addresses death as “poor death”. Neither Death kills them nor death can kill the speaker.
The speaker feels pity for Death.

Here the speaker does not give any reason why he thinks death cannot kill man or him. However, towards the end of the sonnet, it becomes clear his point of view on his statement.

The speaker argues that Death is like having a sleep. He at first compares Death with rest and sleep. After a peaceful rest and sleep, man feels energetic, good. These provide men with pleasure. Similarly, the speaker argues that death is like having a rest and sleep.

If a man gets pleasure from day-to-day rest and sleep then there must be more pleasant than the normal rest and sleep while a man will die.

He says that when the best men of the society such as patriots, soldiers, wise men, good men, etc die then the bones of the body decay and those finally mingle with the soil. However, the soul does not die it goes to heaven. The soul is delivered to heaven.

This is a Christian element in the poem. In Christianity, it is believed that after death the soul leaves the body and it goes to heaven to live with God. This is the point of view that I have just mentioned above.

The speaker argues that when the good people die, there is no cause of concern. Death becomes a mediator between life and eternal life. It delivers the soul that is good for man.

Since his job is to deliver soul, this propels the speaker to address Death as a slave. He says that Death is a slave to fate, chance, kings, and desperate men.

Analysis Video

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Video

It is fate that actually decides the end moment of a man’s life. Death has to appear before a man if fate decides.

In the case of chance, death can do nothing except taking the soul from a man. Similarly, it is the king who takes the control of subordinate men. If a king decides to punish another man, Death has to obey the commands of the king.

Even in the case of desperate men, men who willingly take away their lives. In front of their reckless decision, death can do nothing. Death has to appear before them.

As a metaphysical poem, the conceit is Death is compared to a slave. Just a slave accepts and follows the commands of his master. Similarly, Death follows the instructions of fate, chance, kings, and desperate men. The speaker asserts that death is not the master of man’s destiny.

Death is powerless because death is also a slave to who dies of poison or dies in war, or dies of the disease.

The people who die of poisoning, the soldiers who die in battle, or a sick man who dies of disease- in each situation, death has no will. He is powerless.

The speaker further mocks death by saying that Death cannot even give pleasure to men. A poppy can bring better sleep than what Death can bring. Therefore there is no need of feeling proud.

Here the speaker is at the height of his mockery at Death. At first, says that death can provide pleasure to men more than rest and sleep. Later, he says poppy is what gives more pleasure than death.

The speaker says that even if death is like sleep the sleep does not last long. After the sleep, a man wakes eternally, and thereafter there is no death.

When their time comes, death has to appear to them and death becomes a meditator between life and eternity.

The speaker tries to debunk the common belief regarding death. He argues with God and uses his reason to assert the point that death is nothing but a change of state.

The speaker tries to debunk the common belief regarding death. He argues with God and uses his reason to assert the point that death is nothing but a change of state.

Sources-

1. poets.org. https://poets.org/poem/death-be-not-proud-holy-sonnet-10