Anyways, I decided to clear up this problem because as Professor Calhoun has remarked on my rumination John Donne and Don Juan cannot possibly be confused with one another. This is because Don Juan is a fictional character who can be compared to Casanova. The plot of his stories are ones in which he seduces women and then takes the pleasure in fighting the men that they are betrothed or married to. John Donne's story is much different. In fact, at the age of 29 he married Anne Moore who bore him twelve children in their sixteen years of marriage. Anne Moore died during the birth of her last child, so John Donne was left to tend and take care of his children. He never remarried to help him do so. As far as I can tell John Donne was not a womanizer like the fabled Don Juan.
Friday, March 18, 2011
Creative Engagement: Just A Little History
This week I entitled my rumination I Keep Calling John Donne, Don Juan. I apologize if this has caused any confusion. This title made complete sense in my head because I can't seem to say this author's name without first stuttering Don Juan. Weird, I know, but this name is seriously a tongue twister for me.
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I didn't mean to suggest JD and DJ couldn't be confused...in fact, I liked your approach well enough to draw attention to it. You're right that DJ was a fictional character, but in some ways, so was "Jack Donne", the playboy who changed his ways and became the pious Dr. Donne. For more on this, read the short section on Izaak Walton, Donne's biographer (p. 1309 in Norton).
ReplyDeletehmm after reading Izaak Walton's Life of Donne its clear that John Donne became enlightened through religion and became enlightened enough to change his life. For as he so famously quoted, "How much I shall be changed, Before I am changed!" Maybe it was his 8 children, finding the love of his life or God's desire that John Donne turn his life around and became Dr. Donne. It's great to have this second hand source included in the Norton because as can be seen from by earlier post, history via the internet can sometimes leave out the naughtier details of the past. This piece is a great historical source for having a real glance into John Donne's life instead of an account whose origins are unbeknownst to us. Thank you Josh for the historical update!
ReplyDeleteAlso, that was me that commented. For some reason I was signed in as Gamma Sigma Sigma. I must have forgotten to sign out of my other google account. Sorry about that!
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