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John Donne was born in London, England in 1572. He is considered as one of the most famous metaphysical poets in the English language and is also noted for his famous sermons. He was educated at Oxford and Cambridge and the age of 24 served as secretary to Sir Thomas Egerton. He served on the council of Egerton until 1601 when he was imprisoned for his secret marriage to Anne More, the cousin of Egerton. Following his imprisonment, John Donne struggled to survive until he joined the Anglican church in 1615, where he became chaplain to James I. In 1621, John Donne was named as the dean of St. Paul's Cathedral. While at St. Paul's Cathedral, he preached and wrote many of his works until his death in 1624.
John Donne's poetry consisted of both secular and religious topics. The early secular poetry was attributed to the young flamboyant Jack Donne and until he gained religious maturity wrote many steamy and sexy poems. Then Jack Donne changed and began writing religious poetry, where he assumed the name Dr. John Donne.
Although the subjects of his poetry had changed, the metaphysical writing style of John Donne had not been altered. The young Jack Donne often paralleled his passionate love affairs with the religion of the church, but interestingly enough when he began writing his religious poems, he began comparing it to sex.
John Donne will always be considered as one of the greatest metaphysical poets to ever pick up a pen and paper. His wordplay, unnatural contrasts, and his sexual connotations make his work exciting and interesting. Donne's poem, "The Extasie" is a clear example of his metaphysical comparisons and is one of my favorites.
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