📌 John Donne
🧑🎓 Biography:
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Born: 1572, London, England
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Died: March 31, 1631
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John Donne was an English poet, scholar, soldier, and cleric in the Church of England.
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Known for his metaphysical poetry, exploring love, religion, and death.
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Became Dean of St. Paul's Cathedral in 1621.
👪 Parents:
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Father: John Donne (a wealthy ironmonger, Roman Catholic)
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Mother: Elizabeth Heywood (niece of Catholic martyr Thomas More)
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His family faced religious persecution for being Catholic.
🏰 Century:
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Lived in the late 16th and early 17th century (Elizabethan and Jacobean era).
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Wrote during the English Renaissance period.
📚 Famous Works:
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Poems:
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The Flea
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The Good Morrow
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A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning
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The Sun Rising
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The Canonization
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Religious Writings:
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Holy Sonnets (incl. “Death, be not proud”)
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Devotions upon Emergent Occasions
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✍️ Style and Structure:
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Known for Metaphysical Poetry: intellectual, witty, and deeply philosophical.
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Uses conceits (extended metaphors), paradoxes, and dramatic monologue style.
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Complex sentence structure and irregular meter.
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Combines emotional intensity with logical argument.
✅ Key Points:
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Started as a secular (romantic/love) poet, later turned to religious themes.
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Often explored the conflict between physical love and spiritual salvation.
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His work reflects his life experiences, especially spiritual crises.
🎭 Themes:
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Love (spiritual and physical)
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Death and immortality
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Religion and salvation
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Doubt, faith, and inner conflict
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Human soul and divine truth
⚖️ Controversies:
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Born Catholic but converted to Anglicanism – caused suspicion in his time.
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Some early poems were considered erotic or shocking by conservative audiences.
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His shift from love poetry to religious sermons was dramatic and debated.
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