John Donne's 17th sonnet Since She Whom I Loved contrast itself from the other sonnets in the collection of the Holy Sonnets. The central element of 17th sonnet is the death of John Donne's wife which complements his relationship with God.
The sonnet illustrates the happenings in John Donne's life. According to the researchers the death of his wife Anne caused a great impact on his life. She passed away at age 33 after giving birth to her twelfth child. He mourned her soo deeply that he devoted the 17th sonnet to her. In the sonnet he gradually reveals the formation of his relationship to God, which is motivated by her death.
John Donne opens the poem by addressing his wife Anne with the words ''Since she whom I lov'd''(1342). The woman …show more content…
In the next two lines ''Here the admiring her my mind did whet/To seek thee, God; so streams do show the head''(1342) John reveals that his wife was the cause for his admiration and yearning for God. He compares her to streams that lead to a certain source, which in this case is God. Even though he found God, he can not ease his turmoil. John seeks for more God's love, which he explains as never ending thirst. This inability to satisfy his thirst is shown in the lines''A holy thirsty dropsy0 melts me yet.''(1342). In the next line John addresses directly God by asking him a question, which can be interpreted as rhetorical question''But why should I beg more love, whenas thou/ Dost woo my soul, for hers offering all thine:''(1342). He wonders why should he beg for more love, when God's love has no limit?! He sees the exchange of his wife's love for God's love as an unfair trade. In the line 11th line ''And dost not only fear lest I allow''(1342) John indicates that even God is capable of feeling fear, which is the result of God's jealousy over divine things ''My love to saints and angels, things divine''(1342) In the last line''But in thy tender jealousy dost doubt/fear Lest the world, flesh, yea, …show more content…
Hassanzadeh explain that God could not have spoken to John Donne for sure. He arguments that John had taken the Bible literary, why he decided rather to explore than accept conventionally, therefore he was troubled by many conclusions he drew.
I believe that as a result of John being a religious man he tried to find solace in the Bible. The death of his wife was an unexpected turmoil, for which had to find a way to ease his suffering from such an unexpected turn in his life. Therefore, I believe him to have tried to find a sort of comfort by blaming God for his wife's death and trying to find peace by becoming more religious, perhaps just to feel closer to his
The sonnet illustrates the happenings in John Donne's life. According to the researchers the death of his wife Anne caused a great impact on his life. She passed away at age 33 after giving birth to her twelfth child. He mourned her soo deeply that he devoted the 17th sonnet to her. In the sonnet he gradually reveals the formation of his relationship to God, which is motivated by her death.
John Donne opens the poem by addressing his wife Anne with the words ''Since she whom I lov'd''(1342). The woman …show more content…
In the next two lines ''Here the admiring her my mind did whet/To seek thee, God; so streams do show the head''(1342) John reveals that his wife was the cause for his admiration and yearning for God. He compares her to streams that lead to a certain source, which in this case is God. Even though he found God, he can not ease his turmoil. John seeks for more God's love, which he explains as never ending thirst. This inability to satisfy his thirst is shown in the lines''A holy thirsty dropsy0 melts me yet.''(1342). In the next line John addresses directly God by asking him a question, which can be interpreted as rhetorical question''But why should I beg more love, whenas thou/ Dost woo my soul, for hers offering all thine:''(1342). He wonders why should he beg for more love, when God's love has no limit?! He sees the exchange of his wife's love for God's love as an unfair trade. In the line 11th line ''And dost not only fear lest I allow''(1342) John indicates that even God is capable of feeling fear, which is the result of God's jealousy over divine things ''My love to saints and angels, things divine''(1342) In the last line''But in thy tender jealousy dost doubt/fear Lest the world, flesh, yea, …show more content…
Hassanzadeh explain that God could not have spoken to John Donne for sure. He arguments that John had taken the Bible literary, why he decided rather to explore than accept conventionally, therefore he was troubled by many conclusions he drew.
I believe that as a result of John being a religious man he tried to find solace in the Bible. The death of his wife was an unexpected turmoil, for which had to find a way to ease his suffering from such an unexpected turn in his life. Therefore, I believe him to have tried to find a sort of comfort by blaming God for his wife's death and trying to find peace by becoming more religious, perhaps just to feel closer to his