John Donne’s Poetry between the Petrarchan Tradition and Postmodern Philosophy: A Case Study- “The Canonization”

Abstract

This paper sheds light on the way John Donne’s poetry (1572-1631) deconstructs the familiar notions and foreshadows a literary area of postmodern contemplation and meditation. It may be true that Donne was influenced by the medieval ideas, but in his mature years he was persuaded that literature and poetry should submit to deep changes.  In fact, the centrality of love and religion in Donne’s poetry seduces him to explore and discover the tenor of the universe theoretically and practically. The journey of discovery and exploration provides him with efforts to decode the inner spirituality by accepting the subversive, ambiguous, unfamiliar, and rebellious poetic concepts. Bearing all this in mind, this article yearns to scrutinize the fact that Donne seeks to devise a poetic platform to liberate literature and poetry from conventional modes of versification. The explanation of this attitude seems to be simple and easy understandable, but also rather surprising and complicated. The analysis will show that Donne’s poetry resorts to the sacred and profane in order to criticize social perspectives, and undermine established rules of poetry. The illustration of this attitude requires a deep analysis of his love and religious poems.