John donne for whom the bell tolls

DLTK's PoemsFor Whom the Bell Tolls

by John Donne

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 manor 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.

Printable Versions:


John donne for whom the bell tolls

Arial

GIF or PDF


John donne for whom the bell tolls

Calligraphy

GIF or PDF


John donne for whom the bell tolls

Comic Sans Ms
(Coloring Page)

GIF or PDF


John donne for whom the bell tolls

Comic Sans Ms
(Poster)

GIF or PDF


John donne for whom the bell tolls

Script

GIF or PDF


John donne for whom the bell tolls

Times Roman

GIF or PDF


From "Devotions upon Emergent Occasions" (1623), XVII: Nunc Lento Sonitu Dicunt, Morieris - "Now, this bell tolling softly for another, says to me: Thou must die."

PERCHANCE he for whom this bell tolls may be so ill, as that he knows not it tolls for him; and perchance I may think myself so much better than I am, as that they who are about me, and see my state, may have caused it to toll for me, and I know not that.
The church is Catholic, universal, so are all her actions; all that she does belongs to all.
When she baptizes a child, that action concerns me; for that child is thereby connected to that body which is my head too, and ingrafted into that body whereof I am a member.
And when she buries a man, that action concerns me: all mankind is of one author, and is one volume; when one man dies, one chapter is not torn out of the book, but translated into a better language; and every chapter must be so translated; God employs several translators; some pieces are translated by age, some by sickness, some by war, some by justice; but God's hand is in every translation, and his hand shall bind up all our scattered leaves again for that library where every book shall lie open to one another.
As therefore the bell that rings to a sermon calls not upon the preacher only, but upon the congregation to come, so this bell calls us all; but how much more me, who am brought so near the door by this sickness.
There was a contention as far as a suit (in which both piety and dignity, religion and estimation, were mingled), which of the religious orders should ring to prayers first in the morning; and it was determined, that they should ring first that rose earliest.
If we understand aright the dignity of this bell that tolls for our evening prayer, we would be glad to make it ours by rising early, in that application, that it might be ours as well as his, whose indeed it is.
The bell doth toll for him that thinks it doth; and though it intermit again, yet from that minute that this occasion wrought upon him, he is united to God.
Who casts not up his eye to the sun when it rises? but who takes off his eye from a comet when that breaks out? Who bends not his ear to any bell which upon any occasion rings? but who can remove it from that bell which is passing a piece of himself out of this world? 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.
Neither can we call this a begging of misery, or a borrowing of misery, as though we were not miserable enough of ourselves, but must fetch in more from the next house, in taking upon us the misery of our neighbours.
Truly it were an excusable covetousness if we did, for affliction is a treasure, and scarce any man hath enough of it.
No man hath affliction enough that is not matured and ripened by it, and made fit for God by that affliction.
If a man carry treasure in bullion, or in a wedge of gold, and have none coined into current money, his treasure will not defray him as he travels.
Tribulation is treasure in the nature of it, but it is not current money in the use of it, except we get nearer and nearer our home, heaven, by it.
Another man may be sick too, and sick to death, and this affliction may lie in his bowels, as gold in a mine, and be of no use to him; but this bell, that tells me of his affliction, digs out and applies that gold to me: if by this consideration of another's danger I take mine own into contemplation, and so secure myself, by making my recourse to my God, who is our only security.

What does'for whom the Bell Tolls'mean?

'For whom the bell tolls' is a quotation from a work by John Donne, in which he explores the interconnectedness of humanity. What's the origin of the phrase 'For whom the bell tolls'? John Donne (1572-1631), wrote the line 'for whom the bell tolls' in Devotions Upon Emergent Occasions, Meditation XVII:

Does the Bell Tolls for thee quote from John Donne?

‘Never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee’ is a phrase from one of John Donne’s most famous pieces of writing, but it’s not a work of poetry. Instead, this line appears in one of Donne’s prose writings:

Where does ‘never send to know for whom the Bell Tolls’ come from?

Many people would be able to identify the origins of ‘never send to know for whom the bell tolls’ in the work of John Donne (which would be correct), with quite a few of them thinking that the line originated in a poem of Donne’s (which would not be correct).

Who wrote the line'for whom the Bell Tolls'?

John Donne (1572-1631), wrote the line 'for whom the bell tolls' in Devotions Upon Emergent Occasions, Meditation XVII: "Perchance he for whom this bell tolls may be so ill, as that he knows not it tolls for him; and perchance I may think myself so much better than I am,...

What does for whom the bell tolls by John Donne mean?

In Donne's essay, “For whom does the bell toll?” is the imaginary question of a man who hears a funeral bell and asks about the person who has died. Donne's answer to this question is that, because none of us stands alone in the world, each human death affects all of us. Every funeral bell, therefore, “tolls for thee.”

Who originally said for whom the bell tolls?

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.”

What poem has for whom the bell tolls?

The oft-quoted 'no man is an island' line, as well as the 'for whom the bell tolls' one, come the seventeenth Meditation in Donne's Devotions.

What is the tone of for whom the bell tolls by John Donne?

Donne addresses humanity, asking everyone to reconsider how they perceive themselves and their relationship to everyone else. Donne creates a mood and tone that are contemplative and thoughtful, while direct enough to clearly convey the major themes of 'For Whom the Bell Tolls.