A Question...

[Aurora Ariel]

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[Virgil]

No man is an island

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 any manner of thy friends 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.

John Donne

I was just reading this great poem by John Donne earlier. Does anyone know if this is where Ernest Hemingway got the idea for the title of his book? Or did he just get it from common usage and never read his poems? I'm just really curious if anyone has read this...
Yes he did. Absolutely get it from Donne. But common usage also comes from Donne's statement.

[Xamonas Chegwe]

No man is an island. No man is an island. No man is an island...

... He's a peninsula.

Always liked this - not sure why.

[Virgil]

Always liked this - not sure why.
:lol: Really. What song is that from?

[Xamonas Chegwe]

It's from "A Small Package Of Value Will Come To You, Shortly", on "After Bathing at Baxter's". Very druggy stuff.

[Petrarch's Love]

:lol: I like the Jefferson Airplane quote Xamanos.

Just one pedantic note on the original post. This doesn't actually come from a poem by Donne. It's from the middle of his Meditation XVII in Devotions upon Emergent Occasions. Just thought this might be helpful for anyone trying to locate it.

[Aurora Ariel]

Thank you for the quick reply, Virgil. Have you also read all of Hemingway's books? I've only read his tremendously engaging short tale, The Old Man and the Sea, but have heard about For Whom the Bells Toll. So I would like to read this one eventually. It was actually a selection of John Donne which I read online, and I don't actually have a copy of Donne's full work, unfortunately, but thanks for the note, PL. I'll try and find a copy, and read the entire work soon.

[Virgil]

Thank you for the quick reply, Virgil. Have you also read all of Hemingway's books? I've only read his tremendously engaging short tale, The Old Man and the Sea, but have heard about For Whom the Bells Toll. So I would like to read this one eventually. It was actually a selection of John Donne which I read online, and I don't actually have a copy of Donne's full work, unfortunately, but thanks for the note, PL. I'll try and find a copy, and read the entire work soon.
I've read most of his novels and short stories. We here on lit net read A Farewell To Arms in Jan for the book of the month. You might check out that thread for general comments. I used to think that A Farewell To Arms was his best novel, but after this rereading this past month I think it's fallen a bit in my eyes. I guess I would have to agree with most people and say that The Sun Also Rises is his best novel. I've read For Whom The Bell Tolls, and not found it that great a novel. I don't feel that Hemingway is a great novelist. But I do think he was a great short story writer. If you want to enjoy him, try his short stories. You can't go wrong.