John Donne

Holy Sonnet 10

Personification setup

Donne addresses Death as a person who can feel pride—the entire argument depends on Death having an ego to deflate.

Death be not proud, though some have callèd thee
Mighty and dreadfull, for, thou art not so,
For, those, whom thou think'st, thou dost overthrow,
Die not, poore death, nor yet canst thou kill me.
From rest and sleepe, which but thy pictures bee,

Sleep analogy

If sleep (death's picture/imitation) feels good, then actual death must feel even better. He's arguing from lesser to greater.

Much pleasure, then from thee, much more must flow,
And soonest our best men with thee doe goe,
Rest of their bones, and soules deliverie.

Slavery argument

Death doesn't choose when to strike—it's controlled by fate, accidents, kings ordering executions, and suicides. No autonomy means no power.

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.

Paradox climax

The poem's central paradox: death itself will die. After resurrection, death becomes obsolete—a temporary condition that ends.

Source Wikipedia Poetry Foundation

Reading Notes

The Argument's Logic

Donne builds a legal case against Death's reputation. The poem is structured like a debate: Death has been called mighty and dreadful, but Donne will prove otherwise. Notice he doesn't deny death exists—he denies it has the power people think it has.

The argument moves through three attacks. First: Death doesn't actually kill anyone because of Christian resurrection—souls survive, so death is temporary (lines 3-4). Second: Death is just enhanced sleep, and since sleep is pleasant, death must be too (lines 5-6). Third: Death has no agency—it's a slave to external forces and can be replicated by drugs and magic (lines 9-12).

CONTEXT Donne wrote this around 1609-1610, during a period of financial hardship and illness. He was trained as a lawyer before becoming a priest, and that legal mind shows—he's cross-examining Death like a hostile witness. The poem is a Petrarchan sonnet (octave + sestet), but Donne bends the form: the argument doesn't turn at line 9, it accelerates.

Why 'Swell'st Thou'

"Why swell'st thou then" (line 12) is the poem's hinge. After dismantling Death's power, Donne mocks its pride—"swell" means to puff up with arrogance. If Death is just a slave that can be replaced by "poppie, or charmes" (opium or sleeping spells), why does it act superior?

The final couplet delivers the killing blow: "One short sleepe past, wee wake eternally." Death is reframed as a brief nap before eternal life. The last line's paradox—"death, thou shalt die"—comes from 1 Corinthians 15:26 ("The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death"). Donne turns Death into a mortal thing that will be executed.

Notice the poem's tone: defiant, almost cocky. This isn't somber meditation—it's trash talk. Donne repeats "death" and "thou" to keep jabbing at his opponent, and the final line hammers "death" three times in five words. The poem doesn't comfort—it conquers.