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| John Dryden was a critic of John Donne. |
Today John Donne is considered one of the most influential poets in English. During his
time he was very popular within his small circle of readers and listeners. Shortly after Donne's death, a book was published
with some of his poems entitled Poems, which was highly accepted and admired by contemporaries of his time. However not everyone
was a fan of Donne, and many other contemporaries expressed feelings of disregard with saying he was, "more a wit than a poet."
It seems as though a lot of Donne's early work was widely accepted, but towards the end of his life more people started to
get sick of him (maybe they were jealous.)
John Donne did not live a prosperous life as a poet. He had financial issues with raising several children. Donne worked on
his poetry while working as a lawyer and preacher for the Church of England.
Today the critics say that John Donne was an extraordinary poet, an excellent writer, and influenced many of great poets.
Donne was the most original and at the same time controversial with his subjects of lovemaking and his service to God. With
Donne being known for his work on metaphysical poetry encouraged other poets to do metaphysical poems of their own. Henry
Vaughn was one of those poets.
One of Donne's most popular books that would have been enjoyed by contemporaries of his time would have been his first published
book in 1633 simply named Poems. Today Donne's best work is known as Songs and Sonnets which includes his work
on The Flea.
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