Devotions upon Emergent Occasions

Donne’s writing is both poetic and profound, delving into the depths of the human experience with a raw honesty and vulnerability. The language is rich and evocative, drawing the reader into a world of contemplation and introspection.

Each meditation is a lyrical exploration of the nature of life and death, touching on themes of suffering, redemption, and the fragility of the human condition. Donne’s unique blend of spiritual insight and philosophical reflection creates a powerful and profoundly moving read.

Overall, Devotions upon Emergent Occasions is a profound and stirring work that offers a deep and profound reflection on the nature of existence and the human experience. It is a book that will leave readers pondering the deeper questions of life long after they have finished reading.

Book Description:

Devotions upon Emergent Occasions is a 1624 prose work by the English writer John Donne. It is a series of reflections that were written as Donne recovered from a serious illness, believed to be either typhus or relapsing fever. (Donne does not clearly identify the disease in his text.) The work consists of twenty-three parts describing each stage of the sickness. Each part is further divided into a Meditation, an Expostulation, and a Prayer.

The seventeenth meditation is perhaps the best-known part of the work. It contains the following passage:
“No man is an island, entire of itself; every man 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 manor of thy friend’s or of thine own were: any man’s death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind, and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.”