“Death Be Not Proud” – Poetic devices highlight humanity’s fear of death. In the poem “Death Be Not Proud,” John Donne uses the poetic devices of irony and personification to show that human beings are afraid of death. Ironically, the speaker claims that the dead are not dead. Regarding personification, the speaker states that death dies. Since these words make no sense, they indicate that the speaker (who represents humanity) is afraid of death. By focusing on the poetic devices of irony and personification, this essay illustrates that “Death Be Not Proud” highlights humanity's fear of death. Say no to plagiarism. Get a Custom Essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get an Original EssayBy arguing that the dead are not really dead, the speaker uses irony and in turn emphasizes that human beings have fear of death. To this end, the speaker affirms that “those [whom death] overthrow[s] do not die” (Donne 3, 4). Here the speaker makes an ironic statement; while discussing the hazards of death, the speaker asserts that people do not die. The reader would have difficulty reconciling these two sets of ideas. To make sense of this phrase, one would have to examine it for its thematic significance. This way of thinking would make the reader understand that the speaker is so afraid of death that he is making ironic statements. In this way, irony helps to emphasize humanity's fear of death. The speaker further emphasizes humanity's fear of death by attributing human attributes to death and alleging that death dies. In this regard, the speaker states that death will “die.” To be able to die, an entity must have animate qualities. Here the speaker asserts that, like humans, Death has the capacity to die. This statement implies the application of the poetic device of personification. Since the speaker's words make no sense, this personification serves a deeper thematic purpose. This goal is to show that the speaker is so afraid of death that he cannot think logically. Such instability leads the speaker to think that death has human qualities and can die. From this analysis, it is clear that personification helps to emphasize humanity's fear of death. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a personalized article from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay In conclusion, “Death Be Not Proud” applies the poetic devices of irony and personification to emphasize that human beings are afraid of death. Using these poetic devices, the speaker utters words that emphasize his fear of death. It would be prudent to investigate what might have caused Donne to focus on death in this poem. With this in mind, an investigator would look to see if Donne lost a close friend or family member..