Death Be Not Proud Poem Long Answer Questions

Question 1.
Attempt a critical appreciation of the poem Death Be Not Proud.
Or
Question 2.
Write a note on the theme of death in the poem Death Be Not Proud.
Or
Question 3.
How does Donne present death in his poem Death Be Not Proud? Discuss with close reference to the poem.
Answer:
First published in 1633, Donne’s Death Be Not Proud is included as sonnet No. 10 in the volume of Holy Sonnets: Divine Meditations. The poem presents death as an over hyped figure and inverts its archetype image of being dreadful to mankind.

Death’s life threatening nature is just a human fear since death can only ensure a mere sleep in between our earthly lives and the eternal afterlife. Donne’s vision of death is thus positive in the sense that it liberates our soul into eternity and finally has no control over it.

To begin with, from the very outset of the poem Donne snubs death for its pride of being a terrifying image always feared by humans. But death actually is not horrifying since people don’t die even when death seizes their corporal self. Death is like rest and sleep which are essential parts of human life. The relief we get in repose is similar to the relief ensured after we die.

Hence, virtuous people die early as they are fortunate to have their souls liberated from their bodies. Death liberates their souls to heaven where fearless life is ensured forever. Donne’s belief in eternity is established when he boldly claims, “nor yet canst thou kill me”. Such assertion establishes Donne’s belief that death has no power to corrupt the eternal soul.

The sestet Of the poem further debunks the belief that death is a victor. Death is condemned as a slave or agent of Fate, accident, power of kings and criminals which are fatal to mankind. The tools of death are poison, war and sickness which ensure severe pain. Opium and magical spells are gentler than death’s blow as they induce painless sleep.

Moreover, death can only ensure a mere sleep in between our earthly lives and the eternal afterlife. Our souls reach heaven when we die. Death has no power over us when souls reach heaven. We become independent of death and it is death which finally dies. Then why is death puffed up with pride? The simple answer is human fear which elevates death as a monumental figure when it is. just without absolute power

Question 4.
Consider Death Be Not Proud as a metaphysical poem.
Answer:
The term ‘metaphysical’ was first applied by John Dryden to group together certain 17th century poets like Donne, Marvel, Vaughan and others who introduced an intellectual and colloquial tone in poetry. Metaphysical poets were brought into limelight by T.S. Eliot who attempts to find in their work a unification of thought and feeling and a fusing of reason with passion, in his The Metaphysical Poets (1921).

The chief characteristic features of metaphysical poetry are argumentative structure, dramatic and colloquial mode of utterance, acute realism as well as metaphysical wit. All these features dominant in Donne’s poetry contribute to the originality of his own. To begin with, the very opening line of the poem sets the argumentative structure of the poem. Donne snubs the overhyped image of death and continues arguing why death isn’t terrifying to mankind.

Death is like rest and sleep which are essential parts of human life. The relief we get in repose is similar to the relief ensured after we die. Virtuous people are thus, fortunate in the sense that they die early and their souls reach heaven where death has no control. Donne’s belief in eternity is established when he boldly claims that death can never “kill” him. Such assertion establishes Donne’s belief that death has no power to corrupt the eternal soul.

The sestet of the poem further debunks the belief that death is a victor. Death is condemned as a slave or agent of Fate, accident, power of kings and criminals which are fatal to mankind. The tools of death are poison, war and sickness which ensure severe pain while people die. Opium and magical spells are thus, gentler than death’s blow as they induce painless sleep.

Moreover, death can only ensure a mere sleep in between our earthly lives and the eternal afterlife. Our souls reach heaven when we die. Death has no power over us when souls reach heaven. We become independent of death and it is death which finally dies.

Then why is death puffed up with pride? The argument raised in the poem is thus, logical and well answered. This is the essence of metaphysical poetry which Donne well establishes in his sonnet no 10 (Death Be Not Proud).

Death Be Not Proud Poem Short Answer Questions

Question 1.
How does the poet snub death in the sestet part of the poem?
Answer:
The sestet of the poem debunks the belief that death is a victor. Death is condemned as a slave or agent of Fate, accident, power of kings and criminals which are fatal to mankind. The tools of death are poison, war and sickness which ensure severe pain while people die. Opium and magical spells are thus, gentler than death’s blow as they induce painless sleep.

Moreover, death can only ensure a mere sleep in between our earthly lives and the eternal afterlife. Our souls reach heaven when we die. Death has no power over us when souls reach heaven. We become independent of death and it is death which finally dies. Then why is death puffed up with pride? The argument raised in the poem is thus, answered at last.

Question 2.
How does Donne presents a negative image of death in his poem Death, be not Proud.
Answer:
From the very outset of the poem Donne snubs death for its pride of being a terrifying image, always feared by human Donne argues that death actually is not horrifying since people don’t die even when death seizes our corporal self. Death is like rest and sleep which are essential parts of human life. The relief we get in repose is similar to the relief ensured after we die. Death actually liberates our souls to heaven where fearless life is ensured forever.

Donne’s image of death is thus, nothing positive since he calls death as “slave” to slave to fate, chance, kings, and desperate men Fate, accident, power of kings and criminals which are fatal to mankind. The tools of death are poison, war and sickness which ensure severe pain. Narcotic drugs like Opium and magical spells are gentler than death’s blow as they induce painless sleep.

Moreover, death can only ensure a mere sleep in between our earthly lives and the eternal afterlife. Our souls reach heaven when we die. Death has no power over us when souls reach heaven. We become independent of death and it is death which finally dies. In this sense however, death is a loser, no matter how people overhype death because of their fear to die.

Death Be Not Proud Poem Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs)

Question 1.
What image of death is established in the poem Death Be Not Proud?
a. Philanthropic
b. innocent
c. proud
d. fatal
Answer:
c. proud

Question 2.
How do people fancy death?
a. 3s a friend to mankind
b. as enemy to mankind
c. as inevitable part of life
d. mighty and dreadful
Answer:
d. mighty and dreadful

Question 3.
death is like …………..
a. friend to mankind
b. rest and sleep
c. an enemy to mankind
d. a timid creature
Answer:
b. rest and sleep

Question 4.
Death has control over our …………..
a. body
b. soul
c. mind
d. health
Answer:
a. body

Question 5.
People who die early are …………..
a. poor
b. rich
c. criminals
d. virtuous
Answer:
d. virtuous

Question 6.
The tools of death are …………..
a. love and hate
b. poison, war, and sickness
c. hunger
d. none of the above
Answer:
b. poison, war, and sickness

Question 7.
Death slave to …………..
a. to fate, chance, kings, and desperate men
b. love and beauty
c. compassion and healthy living
d. naivety and purity
Answer:
a. to fate, chance, kings, and desperate men

Question 8.
What can make us sleep better than death?
a. love and care
b. good food and bed
c. poppy or magical charm
d. a comfortable room
Answer:
c. poppy or magical charm

Question 9.
What kind of sleep is ensured by death?
a. eternal sleep
b. short sleep
c. long sleep
d. disturbed sleep
Answer:
b. short sleep

Question 10.
How do we wake eternally after we die?
a. Death wakes us up in heaven
b. our souls reaches heaven where eternal life is ensured
c. we wake up once more after death leaves us
d. God wakes us up to enjoy eternal life
Answer:
b. our souls reaches heaven where eternal life is ensured

Death Be Not Proud Poem Summary

Death Be Not Proud Poem Introduction

First published in 1633, Donne’s Death Be Not Proud is included as sonnet No. 10 in the volume of Holy Sonnets: Divine Meditations. The poem presents death as an overhyped figure and inverts its archetype image of being dreadful to mankind. Death’s life threatening nature is just a human fear since death can only ensure a mere sleep in between our earthly lives and the eternal afterlife.

Donne’s vision of death is thus positive in the sense that it liberates our soul into eternity and finally has no control over it. The poem is written in the form of Pertrachan sonnet with definite octet and sestet division and follows the rhyme, abba abba cddcee.

Death Be Not Proud Poem Summary

Death be not Proud snubs the pride of death all because of its terrifying image. People fear death and they unnecessarily overhype death because of its life threatening nature.

But, death actually Is not horrifying since people don’t actually die even when death seizes their corporal self. In fact, death is like rest and sleep which are inevitable parts of human life. The relief we get in repose is similar to the relief ensured after we die.

Hence, virtuous people die early as they are fortunate to have their souls liberated from their bodies. Death liberates their souls to heaven where fearless life is ensured forever. Death is further snubbed by being fancied as a slave or agent of Fate, accident, power of kings and criminals which can bring about one’s death. The tools of death are poison, war and sickness which ensure severe pain. Opium and magical spells are gentler than death’s blow as they induce painless sleep.

Moreover, death can only ensure a mere sleep in between our earthly lives and the eternal afterlife. Our souls reach heaven when we die. Death has no power over us when souls reach heaven. We become independent of death and it is death which finally dies.

Death Be Not Proud Poem Paraphrase

Lines 1 to 8 :

The pride of death seems inconsequential despite fancied as fearful being. Death has always remained an overhyped figure all because of its life threatening nature. But, death actually is not horrifying since people don’t actually die even when death seizes their corporal self. In fact, death is like rest and sleep which are essential parts of human life.

The relief we get in rest and sleep is similar to the relief ensured after death. Hence, virtuous people die early as they are fortunate to have their souls liberated from their bodies. Death liberates their souls to heaven where death has no control over anything. In this sense death cannot kill even the speaker.

Lines 9 to 14 :

Death is further snubbed by being fancied as a slave or agent of Fate, accident, power of kings and criminals which can bring about one’s death. The tools of death are poison, war and sickness which ensure severe pain.

Opium and magical spells are gentler than death’s blow as they induce painless sleep. Moreover, death can only ensure a mere sleep in between our earthly lives and the eternal afterlife. Our souls reach heaven when we die. Death has no power over us when soul reaches heaven. We become independent of death and it is death which finally dies.

Death Be Not Proud Poem Annotations with Comments

Lines 1 to 8 :

Death : death here is personified as an arrogant figure feared by the people
be not proud : not to be arrogant for its life threatening
nature some : some people
thee : refers to death
though some. ……. thee : though some people fancy death as terrifying being
Mighty and dreadful : death is often overhyped as powerful and appalling figure since it take lives
Thou art ……. so : despite being fancied as an immensely powerful figure, death actually is not what we imagine
Those…poor death: those who have died are actually not dead in reality
Nor yet…kill me : nor can death kill the speaker completely
From rest and sleep: death here is compared to rest and sleep
Thy pictures: sleep is just a picture of death and vice versa
Overthrow : defeat
Pleasure…. from thee : people actually derive pleasure from death since death releases our souls from the prison of our bodies
much more must flow: If people derive relaxation from sleep which is but a picture of death, then death must be the source of greater comfort and rest
best men : virtuous men
with thee : with death
best men …… do go : virtuous men die earlier than common mass
bones : body
soul’s delivery : souls delivered to heaven after the death of our corporal self

Comments:

From rest and sleep..thy picture be: The speaker fancies death as the replica of rest and sleep. A person in sleep looks exactly like a corpse. Hence, death is just the picture of sleep and rest.

Much pleasure, then from thee: people actually derive pleasure from death since death ensures a comfortable sleep In between our earthly lives and the eternal afterlife. Moreover, since death releases our souls from the prison of our bodies, it is thus fancied as great source of pleasure.

our best men….. soul’s delivery : virtuous men die early which is a kind of bliss to them. Death releases their souls from the prison of their bodies and their souls reach heaven where death has no control over anything. Death thus, only has power over our corporal self.
Poison ………. dwell : since they can bring about one’s death Poison, war and sickness are the tools of death

Lines 9 to 14:

Thou : refers to death
Chance : accident
Desperate men : criminals
Slave to ….. desperate men: death is fancied as slave or agent of Fate, accident, power of kings and criminals
Poison ……… dwell : since they can bring about one’s death Poison, war and sickness are the tools of death.
Poppy : opium
Charms : magical charms
Better than thy stroke: ensure gentle sleep than death can offer
poppy, or ….. as well : induce better sleep more easily as well as in a gentle manner
why swell’st …. then : why shall death be proud then?
One short eternally : death can induce only a temporary sleep after which we shall live eternally in heaven
Death shall ………. more : death shall have no control over our souls once being liberated from our bodies. The soul will reach heaven and enjoy eternal life.
Death..shalt die : ultimately it is death which itself dies while our souls enjoy the eternal bliss of heaven.

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