John Donne King of Wit

John Donne ( ) Roman Catholic in a Protestant England Studied at Cambridge and Oxford Imprisoned for marrying Anne More, his employer’s 16 year old niece becomes Anglican priest

John Donne Scientific mind: Post-Copernican man of intellect Dominant figure of a school of 17th century English writers known as the metaphysical poets. As one of the first modern writers, the construction of a historical self becomes crucial to the texts and their interpretation.

Wit “Scholar Louis Marz describes wit as ‘intellect, reason, powerful mental capacity, cleverness, ingenuity, intellectual quickness, inventive and constructive ability, a talent for uttering brilliant things, the power of amusing surprise.’”

Donne’s Wit During the Renaissance, the term "wit" referred to intelligence or wisdom. Connotation of intellectual and verbal ingenuity. Achsah Guibbory: "involves surprise, a desire to startle readers, to make them look at things in a new, unconventional way."

Donne’s Wit Development of a metaphysical conceit--an insightful use of analogy, metaphor or inventive joining of dissimilar images to make a point in a poem. Helen Gardner: "close-packed and dense with meaning, something to be 'chewed and digested,' which will not give up its secrets on first reading."

Metaphysical By itself, metaphysical means dealing with the relationship between spirit to matter or the ultimate nature of reality. Use of ordinary speech mixed with puns, paradoxes and conceits The exaltation of wit, which in the 17th century meant a nimbleness of thought; a sense of fancy (imagination of a fantastic or whimsical nature); and originality in figures of speech

Metaphysical Conceit will use some sort of shocking or unusual comparison as the basis for the metaphor. has a startling appropriateness that makes us look at something in an entirely new way. The classic metaphysical conceit is Donne's comparison of the union between two lovers to the two legs of a compass in "A Valediction Forbidding Mourning." In Holy Sonnet 14, there are other surprising metaphors--comparing God to a violent invader and a rapist, for instance.

Metaphysical Poetry implies a highly intellectual approach to poetry Relied on scientific ideas Metaphysical concerns are the common subject of their poetry, which investigates the world by rational discussion of its phenomena rather than by intuition or mysticism.

Metaphysical Poets Reacting against the deliberately smooth and sweet tones of much 16th-century verse, the metaphysical poets adopted a style that is energetic, uneven, and rigorous. T. S. ELIOT argued that their work fuses reason with passion; it shows a unification of thought and feeling which later became separated into a 'dissociation of sensibility'.”

The Holy Sonnets None were published during Donne's life and they were known only by a small circle. No manuscripts in Donne's hand exist today: scholars have only numerous, differing versions transcribed by others to work with.

The Holy Sonnets Helen Gardner writes, "The image of a soul in meditation which the Holy Sonnets present is an image of a soul working out its salvation in fear and trembling." Biographer R.C. Bald: “Donne's sonnets were the ruminations of a man in spiritual crisis, the product of his innate melancholy temperament, his reduced circumstances and lack of direction in his professional life.”

Holy Sonnets The Donne of the Holy Sonnets wrestles with questions about faith, God's mercy and judgment, human mortality and the immortality of the soul, sin, damnation, absolution and salvation. Donne expresses despair about his own salvation, and reveals his fear of death. The Holy Sonnets are the product of a doubter, one who has not yet found inner peace.

Credits Audience Guide © August 21, 2000, Madison Repertory Theatre by Carol Cohen, PhD University of Wisconsin- Madison & Associate Academic Dean at Edgewood College in Madison, where she also teaches drama. Thomas Docherty’s John Donne Undone. The Luminarium. Dr. Rosemary Allen, Georgetown College htm htm Dr. Marguerite Connor, physicals.html physicals.html