Compare And Contrast Death Be Not Proud And The Tyger

The mere mention of the word death evokes fear, anxiety and restlessness. It preys on the young and old alike, the poor and rich, the strong and weak, the brave and the cowards. Because of its nature that remains to be a mystery, men and women have turned to poetry to vividly describe it, seeking to shed a glimpse of light on this “might foe” Such thoughts are captured in the two poems by John Donne, “Death, Be Not proud” and “The Tyger” by William Blake. For sure death is just a temporal state.
“Death, Be Not Proud” by John Donne
The theme in this poem is death. The author refutes the claim and general perception of people that death is powerful and goes a step further to order it not to be proud. Further, the author rubbishes the claim that death has the power to overthrow sarcastically …show more content…
The author is at pains to understand the nature of the creature he refers to as “Tyger.” In the first stanza, he begins by calling “Tyger, Tyger” hence bringing out the mysteriousness of this creature that he is trying to understand. The author moves further to talk about its power when he writes that it burns brighter even in the forest of darkness. Blake completes the first stanza seeking an answer to why the creator of Tyger creates it.
Further, in the second stanza, Blake suggests to the mysteriousness of where the creation of Tyger took place, whether, in the skies beyond or in the distant deep, little is known. In line seven and eight, the author wonders how the creator of Tyger could hold it in his hands considering its deadliness. The questioning goes on unabated in stanza three, Blake trying to link the movement of shoulders to the general movement of arms in the creation of Tyger. He adds that after the creation had been accomplished and the heart of Tyger begun to beat, how dreadful were the hands and its legs as it went about accomplishing its evil