Poems Ancient and Modern

Poems Ancient and Modern

Share this post

Poems Ancient and Modern
Poems Ancient and Modern
Today’s Poem: Good Friday, 1613. Riding Westward

Today’s Poem: Good Friday, 1613. Riding Westward

John Donne undone in Holy Week

Joseph Bottum's avatar
Joseph Bottum
Mar 29, 2024
∙ Paid
23

Share this post

Poems Ancient and Modern
Poems Ancient and Modern
Today’s Poem: Good Friday, 1613. Riding Westward
2
2
Share
Detail from Matthias Grünewald’s Isenheim Altarpiece, c. 1514 (Wikimedia Commons)

John Donne is hard: knotty and complex. And among his knottiest and most complex poems is his 1613 poem set on Good Friday. It’s also among his best: brutally honest about the excuses we offer ourselves, deeply thought, and captured by the immensity of what he is riding west away from: “Who sees God’s face, that is self-life, must die; / What a death were it then to see God die?”

The 17th-century Metaphysical Poets were not metaphysical in the philosophical meaning of the word, exploring the full nature of reality. When Samuel Johnson (1709–1784) gave them the name, he meant only that they were more abstract than emotional: “Not successful in representing or moving the affections,” he wrote, they created complex conceits of “heterogenous ideas . . . yoked by violence together.” Only the 20th century, dominated by T.S. Eliot’s critical judgments, helped restore their reputation — and remove the insult from …

Keep reading with a 7-day free trial

Subscribe to Poems Ancient and Modern to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.

Already a paid subscriber? Sign in
© 2025 Poems Ancient and Modern
Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Start writingGet the app
Substack is the home for great culture

Share