John Donne is one of the great metaphysical poets, prescribed for the 2027 Leaving Cert English exam. His poetry is famous for its dramatic openings, intellectual arguments about love and death, and complex extended metaphors (conceits). Donne rewards close reading. Examiners notice when students engage with his logic and wordplay rather than just summarising what each poem is about.
Prescribed Poems
Click any poem below for a full study guide with analysis, key quotes, themes, and exam strategy.
Song: Go, and catch a falling star
Song: Sweetest love, I do not goe
A Valediction Forbidding Mourning
At the round earth’s imagined corners