Product Description

Part of the "Everyman" series which includes an introduction, chronology and summary of theme and style. The book also includes a text summary and an annotated reading list.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #568737 in Books
• Published on: 1994-02-03
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 485 pages

Customer Reviews

Good poetry, mediocre edition
The Poetry of John Donne - yes, yes, yes. I can't get enough of it.

Producing an edition of Donne is, however, a rather more difficult task than the platonist critic tends to believe; though first printed in 1633 (I think), these poem circulated widely in manuscript form before they were ever set in the press. Donne never saw his works printed - so how can we be sure of what is the most "authoritative text"? we can't, not really, and perhaps Randall McLeod's forthcoming edition of "On his Mistress Going to Bed" - a typeset version of the poem, plus 68 manuscript facsimiles - indicates this better than anything else.

Get Donne, but don't get this edition, which consistently favours the printed text, forcing the MS variations into the footnotes. I'm not sure what to reccomend in its place, unfortunately, but I imagine the Norton critical text wouldn't be too bad.

NB that I am referring to the AJ Smith edition of Donne's poetry, first published 1976.

The beauty of English
Here we see the English language at its most beautiful exposing the many facets of love with courageous honesty and stunning insight. The human condition has never been better expressed and love has never had such a worthy exponent. For poetry lovers from Wordsworth to TS Eliot, Donne demonstrates how wonderful the English language is at expressing every nuance of our existence and what an amazing servant it can be in the right hands.
You will treasure this book and dip into it often throughout a variety of moods. It will never let you down nor cease to surprise.