Death, be not proud but also be not bad!

"Death, be not proud"
John Donne

In its normal interpretation, death is simply the condition of not living. However, Donne gives life to the state of not living through his use of personification. This is also ironic because he is animating something that simply is the lack of such. However, Donne characterizes death as a benevolent force, even going as far as to claim that death is actually a great form of delight. "From rest and sleep, which but they pictures be,/ Much pleasure - then, from thee much more must flow," suggests that the pleasure that we receive from a restful night of sleep or a break from activity is experienced tenfold in death (Donne, 971). Donne claims that death is just the ultimate form of relaxation and pleasure.

According to Donne, the source of this pleasure from death is eternal life. The time period in which this poem was written suggests that religion still played a major role in the understanding of life for most people. Again, we are presented with a view of death that offers some hope as to what we might face in the time following death. Overall, Donne presents death as a good thing; it is simply a method to make us happier when we think happiness has ended.