For the author, death in its simplest term is stupid and weak. Death is useless, that every time it executes its job it often misses which only adds on misery and pain for man. Death is perceived to be pathetic and frail showing most of its weaknesses in every attempt to fulfill its work even with man's own intervention. Sometimes it isn't strong enough, to swat a fly from the air"

Ill will won't help

And even our lending hands with wars and coup de etat is so far not enough"

It still cannot impede the overall offspring of life because every time it does it only fails and life still continues to prevail. The creativity of man to dissuade death has made it lose its credibility in modern times. According to the poem, there have many times that the occurrence of death has opposed the natural flow time and its fundamental nature.

Death, always arrives by the very moment to late"

In my own point-of-view, the perception of death by both authors only insinuates the beliefs and influences of their own respective era. In Death Be Not Proud, being a literary work in the early 17th century illustrates the religious persuasion of this period. It must be important to note that in this point in time all beliefs with regards to life and death falls in reference with man's faith in his...

Though many among the modern day Christians and believers of the Divine Providence still regards death as an imminent event wherein they expect an optimistic result after death, in contemporary times death is regarded to be a hindrance for all the things that are being planned by man. In this age wherein life is a precious asset that is regarded and taken cared of by man, death is always a matter or an event that must be avoided. Together with man's new found knowledge in this era, science has been a key factor in preventing death to come to man in as much later time possible. Man's continuous quest for immortality justifies the criticism by Wislawa Szymborska on death.
On Death, without Exaggeration ironically ridicules the event of death in a sarcastic manner only to demonstrate that in today's modern era, death is not in its natural course and serves as an impediment for mankind. However opposite in beliefs and perception, there is only one thing certain in both poems, that death is the end of life and is definitely inevitable.

Bibliography

Death Be Not Proud, the Holy Sonnets, John Donnes, v. 5, 10, 15; Extracted October 11, 2006

On Death Without Exaggeration, Wilawa Szymborska, v. 5-45; Extracted October 11, 2006