John Donne

Oh my blacke Soule! now thou art summoned

Oh my black Soule! Now thou art summoned By sicknesse, deaths herald, and champion; Thou art like a pilgrim, which abroad hath done Treason, and durst not turne to whence hee is fled, Or like a thiefe, which till deaths doome be read, Wisheth himselfe deliverd from prison; But damn'd and hal'd to execution, Wisheth that sill he might be imprisioned; Yet grace, if thou repent, thou canst not lacke; But who shall give thee that grace to beginne? Oh make thy selfe with holy mourning blacke; And red with blushing, as thou art with sinne; Or wash thee in Christ's blood, which hath this might That being red, it dyes red soules to white. Glossary Champion - In Donne's time, a champion was one who fought battles for another. IE, sickness both announces the coming of death (herald) and helps bring it about (champion). Overall Explanation It is reasonable to assume that this poem was written during a time of sickness for Donne, because it explores the idea of Donne's death with some anguish. Donne looks into his soul and finds it full of evil ("black"). He compares it first to someone who has committed a terrible wrong in some country and doesn't dare return. In this comparison, the country which has suffered this horrible wrong represents God. In his second comparison, his soul is a thief, who wants to get out of prison until he is sentenced to death, at which time life in prison looks quite appealing! Donne builds up the intensity of the poem with circular reasoning - he needs the grace to repent, but will not have grace until he repents. The ending is a poweful one, partially because Donne employs the paradox of red blood dying something white to create a strong image in the mind. What he means here of course is that the reality of Christ dying for to save humans' souls - the tangible red blood, is enough to make us pure in the eyes of God (white souls).