A Critical Analysis of Death Be Not Proud
Death Be Not Proud " is included as a sonnet of 'Holy Sonnets: this sonnet the poet sings the glory and immortality of the soul, and the ultimate defeat of death. Demolishing the popular idea of death as a mighty and dreadful power, the poet says that it is not powerful as men think. It is rather a miserable slave, an agent of fate, chance, actions of wicked people, poison, wars, sickness and old age. It induces sleep but there are various other means like opium and drugs which give a better and gentler sleep. So death has no reason to be proud of its power. It can only make people sleep for a temporary period of time, and after sleep in the grave people shall wake up on the day of resurrection and live forever. Then death's jurisdiction comes to an end. Importantly, death does not kill human beings. It is actually death that dies, not the soul. Thus, the immortality of the soul is ensured. The fact of the poem that powerlessness of death and the poet p