On Death

Dean of St. Paul’s, John Donne was feted in his day not just as a poet but also as an inspired and inspiring preacher, and these four extended meditations on death are amongst his most powerful and dramatic writings. The magnificent “Death’s Duel” is published here alongside his Lent sermons for the two previous years (1628 and 1629), along with his Easter Day sermon of 1619, preached on the occasion of the King’s sickness. Together they create a fascinating study of early 17th-century attitudes towards death.

Dean of St. Paul’s, John Donne was feted in his day not just as a poet but also as an inspired and inspiring preacher, and these four extended meditations on death are amongst his most powerful and dramatic writings. The magnificent “Death’s Duel” is published here alongside his Lent sermons for the two previous years (1628 and 1629), along with his Easter Day sermon of 1619, preached on the occasion of the King’s sickness. Together they create a fascinating study of early 17th-century attitudes towards death.