Where Death Pauses and Death Boasts: A Comparative Study of Dickinson and Donne’s Poetry

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.18234989

Abstract

This research examines the representation of death in the poetry of John Donne and Emily Dickinson through a comparative literary approach to understand how poetic language reshapes human responses to mortality. The study is introduced by situating both poets within their distinct historical and literary contexts and by highlighting death as a central and enduring poetic concern. The primary objectives are to analyse how death is personified and expressed through imagery, tone, and structure, and to compare the philosophical and theological perspectives that shape Donne’s metaphysical defiance and Dickinson’s lyrical restraint. Methodologically, the research adopts a qualitative design based on close textual analysis of four selected poems by each poet, supported by a comparative and stylistic theoretical framework. The analysis demonstrates that Donne presents death as a boastful force that can be challenged and overcome through faith and rhetorical control, whereas Dickinson portrays death as a paused, ambiguous experience marked by stillness and emotional introspection. The findings reveal that although both poets diminish the authority of death, they do so through contrasting poetic strategies shaped by their cultural and religious contexts. In conclusion, the study shows that poetry functions as a powerful medium for negotiating mortality, allowing death to be either openly confronted or quietly suspended through language and imagination.