John Donne
What does Donne tell the reader about his religion and attitude to the two established Churches in his sonnets? Refer to Sonnet 18 and at least one other poem in your answer. John Donne was born into a prosperous Roman Catholic family during the reign of Elizabeth I, when England was anti-Catholic. Thousands of Catholics were prosecuted and killed in horrific ways if they were caught practising their faith. At a time when Britain and Spain were in war he travelled to Spain stating his love and pride for his faith, which quite clearly came before his country. He then began studying law in “Lincoln’s Inn”, with his brother. However, his brother and some of his friends were caught conducting a Catholic Mass. His brother was imprisoned, where he later died and his friends were killed. It was after this event that he began reading extensively in theology and history, and took a huge step and became an Anglican. This change helped his career greatly but left him confused and unsure of his decision for the rest of his life. This period of his life is shown in his “holy sonnets”, in which he obsesses with the idea of death, sin and religion. We see in almost every peace his fear of rejection from God, as he believes he has sinned grea
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Some common words found in the essay are:
Calvinist Geneva, Catholic Church, Catholic Mass, Protestant Church, Holy Sonnets, Henry VIII's, Church Nevertheless, Church Bible, Catholic Churchs, Britain Spain, catholic church, true church, protestant church, sonnet 18, real church, holy sonnets, unable decide, donne confused, false beauty, churchs false,
Approximate Word count = 1307
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)
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