John Donnes Poetry

John Donne’s PoetryJohn Donne’s Poetry Style
The poetry of John Donne expresses his personal spiritual beliefs. There exists a struggle in his writing with the church and his search spirituality. Donne uses the physical joining of a man and a woman to represent joining with God. Many of his poems describe the process of two people becoming one and ends in an even stronger desire for two to join into one. Even though there may not be any sexual activity occurring with in the body of the poem.
This mirrors the churches and also mirrors the divide Donne feels between himself and God. Donne is torn between two faiths and cannot decide which one is the true faith. Donne has to the belief that perhaps it is not the churches but a soul’s own desires to find the true faith. Death is another subject that Donne brings up. Donne chooses to use things he understands as metaphors for his own enlightenment. He compares ecstasy of sex with that of the sprit. Donne doesn’t necessarily use the pleasure of being with a woman to how he would feel if joined with God, but instead he uses as a way to God.

If sex is an ecstasy and mortal act that it is so great then spiritual ecstasy may feel even greater. This metaphor is important because Donne can easily relate. Donne’s outlook of death as only a moment is another example. Death to John Donne may actually be the point where the journey for spiritual enlightenment ends.
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