Death Be Not Proud The Speaker Of John Donne Death

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In John Donne’s Death, be not proud the speaker laughs in the face of death, personifying it so as to denounce it even more. The speaker begins by comparing his view of death to how others view death; “though some have called thee mighty and dreadful, for thou are not so”. The speaker rationalize this bravery in the face of death stating that “those whom thou think’st thou dost overthrow die not”, meaning that if death is not given any control then it has nothing to take away. The speaker then further belittles death by calling it a “slave to fate, chance, kings, and desperate men”, implying that when human nature takes over death does not stand a chance. Finally, the speaker concludes his belittlement of death by paradoxically stating “death,