Word

THE VALUE of a WORD and an IMAGE

In John Donne's poem, Batter My Heart Three-Personed God, For You, he helps his readers imagine the pain and emotional suffering that he is going through by asking God to, "imprison me," (12). Donne's request to God to imprison him is incredibly powerful because it portrays Donne's weakness. He does not ask God to help him or guide him because he believes that he is too weak to follow God on his own. Through Donne's word choice of imprisoning he makes the reader realize the extent of his inner struggle. His desire for imprisonment portrays his fear towards free will. Donne wants God to take away his free will, so he will not be tempted to make the wrong decisions in life.

The idea of imprisonment is not a pleasant thought. Most people do not ask to be imprisoned by someone and this makes Donne's request even more shocking. The diction of this poem emphasizes Donne's distress and inability to trust himself. He needs God to take complete control over his actions in order to protect him from being tempted by the devil. Donne is not just praying to God for help, but requests that God locks him up and protects him from the evils of the real world. Donne's word choice presents so much frustration and struggle with the idea of free will that would not be understood if Donne had used a less powerful word.

Donne also strengthens the content of his poem dealing with his inner struggle by utilizing the imagery of marriage in his poem. Donne feels trapped by the pressure of temptation, as though he were stuck in an unpleasant marriage. When Donne writes, "But am betrothed unto Your enemy/ Divorce me, untie or break that knot again," (10-11) the reader is left to imagine a helpless spouse that is pressured to stay in an unhealthy marriage when his/her inner conscious encourages he/she to leave and find a healthy marriage.