John Donne | For Whom the Bell Tolls
The following poem is one that has made an impression on popular culture since it was penned in 1624. The author, John Donne, originally wrote it as a work of prose in his “Devotions upon Emergent Occasions,” but it was later formatted into lines of poetry, as seen below. Since then, the work has been alluded to by Hemingway, who wrote a novel of the same title in 1940. Later, Hemingway’s book was adapted for film. Additionally, the BeeGees and Metallica, among others, each wrote and performed songs of the same title. Clearly, as its numerous allusions and popular references can attest, this poem speaks powerfully to its reader, mysteriously characterizing death as an occasion to be saddened but revered, expected and not feared.
For Whom the Bell Tolls
No man is an island,
Entire of itself.
Each is a piece of the continent,
A part of the main.
If a clod be washed away by the sea,
Europe is the less.
As well as if a promontory were.
As well as if a manner of thine own
Or of thine friend’s were.
Each man’s death diminishes me,
For I am involved in mankind.
Therefore, send not to know
For whom the bell tolls,
It tolls for thee.
–John Donne
