COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE LEXICAL-SEMANTIC AND SYMBOLIC CHARACTERISTICS OF THE CONCEPTS OF "LIFE" AND "DEATH": A STUDY OF JOHN DONNE’S HOLY SONNET 10: “DEATH, BE NOT PROUD”, DYLAN THOMAS’S “DO NOT GO GENTLE INTO THAT GOOD NIGHT”, AND ERKIN VOHIDOV’S “IN
Abstract
This article analyzes the philosophical and symbolic interpretations of the concepts of life and death in literary works, with a particular focus on John Donne’s “Holy Sonnet 10: Death, Be Not Proud” and Dylan Thomas’s “Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night.” Additionally, it examines the reflection of life and death in Uzbek literature through Erkin Vohidov’s poem “Inson” (Human). The study explores how death is depicted in literary works, its aesthetic and philosophical meanings, and the symbolic expressions of life and death in various cultural contexts. John Donne’s metaphysical poetry, which portrays death as “defeated,” and Dylan Thomas’s modernist approach, urging resistance against death, are compared with the philosophical imagery in Uzbek poetry. The article discusses the distinctive features of literature across different eras and cultures, as well as their shared philosophical motifs.
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