Community by John Donne (1633)
The poem argues that women, as a class, occupy a moral middle ground where love and hate do not properly apply. It opens by distinguishing categories: good must be loved and ill must be hated, since good is always good and ill always ill, but there exist things indifferent, neither to be loved nor hated, which one may try, then try another, according to the bent of one's fancy. The speaker then reasons that if Nature had originally made women wholly good or wholly bad, some could be hated and some chosen. But since Nature created them so that they can be neither loved nor hated, only one conclusion remains: all may be used. He supports this by arguing that if women were good, it would be evident, since good is as visible as green and betrays itself to all eyes. If they were bad, they could not endure, since bad wastes itself and others. Therefore they deserve neither blame nor praise. The poem concludes that women belong to men as fruits belong to those who eat them: the one who merely tastes, the one who devours everything, and the one who leaves all alone each act equally well. Changed loves are compared to changed kinds of meat, and once a man has eaten the kernel, he naturally flings away the shell.
By John Donne · First published 1633 · Genre: Metaphysical Poetry, Philosophical Poetry, Satirical Poetry · 264 words
First lines
Good we must love, and must hate ill, / For ill is ill, and good good still; / But there are things indifferent, / Which we may neither hate, nor love, / But one, and then another prove, / As we shall find our fancy bent.
If then at first wise Nature had / Made women either good or bad, / Then some we might hate, and some choose; / But since she did them so create, / That we may neither love, nor hate, / Only this rests, all all may use.
If they were good, it would be seen; / Good is as visible as green, / And to all eyes itself betrays. / If they were bad, they could not last; / Bad doth itself and others waste; / So they deserve nor blame, nor praise.
What this Textopian page supports
Community is listed on Textopian as a poem by John Donne, dated 1633 CE.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Poem
- Author: John Donne
- Date: 1633 CE
- Language: English
- Genres: Metaphysical Poetry, Philosophical Poetry, Satirical Poetry, Love Poetry, Lyric Poetry
- Length: 264 words
- Structure: 1 section, 4 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Fairly Easy (7th Grade)
Good citation fit
- Work identity for Community by John Donne
- Canonical title URL and first readable passage URL
- Genre and topic classification from the Textopian catalog
- Readability and classroom-planning context
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Genres
- Metaphysical Poetry — The poem employs the characteristic metaphysical style of philosophical argumentation through verse, logical structure, and wit typical of Donne, using abstract concepts grounded in concrete imagery and paradoxes.
- Philosophical Poetry — The work engages in sustained ethical and moral reasoning about the nature of good, evil, human relationships, and moral judgment, structured as systematic philosophical argument in verse form.
- Satirical Poetry — The poem employs ironic and cynical commentary on women, morality, and romantic love, using mock-serious argumentation to undermine conventional attitudes about virtue and female nature.
- Love Poetry — While jaded and dismissive, the poem addresses romantic and sexual love as its central subject matter, examining attitudes toward romantic relationships and desire.
Tags
women · moral indifference · amorality · seduction · love · desire · inconstancy · fruit imagery · consumption · cynicism · wit · objectification