Poetry · Character

Death

Personified figure of mortality, addressed by Lucrece.

minor

First appearance: the rape of lucrece

Death's tie to Jove is one of the pressures that moves Poetry—worth meeting in the text, not only on a cast list.

Personified as the force that destroys Adonis, prompting Venus's prophecy.

In the storyVenus and AdonisOpen this moment free

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With Jove (rivalry): Death and Jove are opposing forces, with Death claiming Lucrece despite Jove's divine authority over life. With Jove (rivalry): Death and Jove are opposing forces, with Death claiming Lucrece…

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Character Web

4 connections

A slice of how Death sits in the book — open the reader for the full interactive map.

Relationship types

Rivalry
Other

Character groups

Mythological and Personified Figures
Mythological Lovers and Deities
Roman Political Figures

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Narrative arc

Story tension across the book — this chapter sits in Exposition.

Setup
Escalation
Breaking point
Aftermath
Closing

This is the dramatic climax because the speaker reaches an emotional and psychological peak of self-aware torm…

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Relationships

Jove
rivalry · negative
Death and Jove are opposing forces, with Death claiming Lucrece despite Jove's divine… How this plays out →
Jove
rivalry · negative
Death and Jove are opposing forces, with Death claiming Lucrece despite Jove's divine… How this plays out →

Relationship notes

How these ties play out is in the reading companion — open the free preview.

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In the story

Death appears across 19 companion beats. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.

Venus and Adonis
Personified as the force that destroys Adonis, prompting Venus's prophecy.
The Passionate Pilgrim
Personified as causing untimely death, as in 'kill'd too soon by death's sharp sting.'
Chapter X
Death is personified as the agent that kills the fair creature too soon with a sharp sting.
The Phoenix and the Turtle
Death is now the phoenix' nest; the turtle's loyal breast to eternity doth rest.
VI
Personified as a conqueror who would claim the youth if he remains childless.
Sonnet 13
Personified as having 'eternal cold' and 'barren rage'.
XVIII
Personified as a force that cannot claim the beloved because of the immortality granted by the poem.
Sonnet XXII
Personified as the end that expiates days when the beloved shows signs of aging.
Sonnet 30
Personified as the keeper of the dateless night where precious friends are hid.
XXXII
Personified as 'churl Death' who will cover the poet's bones with dust.
Sonnet LV
The enemy against which the beloved shall pace forth.
Sonnet LXV
Implied through 'sad mortality' that over-sways all.
Sonnet LXXIII
Referenced as 'Death's second self' (sleep) and the inevitable end that seals all in rest.
LXXIV
Personified as the arresting officer who carries the poet away.
Sonnet LXXVII
Implied through 'mouthed graves' as the ultimate consequence of time.
Sonnet CVII
Death is personified as a figure that now subscribes to the poet, acknowledging the poet's immortality through verse.
CXLVI
Personified as a force that feeds on men, but will itself be consumed by the soul.
Sonnet CXLVII
Referenced as the outcome of desire, which reason had previously forbidden.
A Lover's Complaint
Implied through the imagery of 'sepulchres in mud' and the destruction of tokens of love.

Chapter companion notes

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