Fusion Of Science And Religion: On The Metaphor Of "The World" In John Donne's Sermons

John Donne (1572– 1631) was an English poet, preacher and a major representative of the metaphysical poets in English Renaissance. His works include love poetry, religious poems, satires, epigrams, elegies and sermons, among of which he won his name by the poetry. His poetry, compared with those of his contemporaries, is noted for its special conceit, which infuses the different things into a metaphor. Samuel Johnson commented Donne's work as,"The most heterogeneous ideas are yoked by violence together".John Donne is known primarily as a poet. When he became the minister of the Anglican Church, his fame as the preacher increased. In fact, John Donne was the most prominent preacher of his time. His sermons attracted crowds of hearers, who came from different classes. The sermons show Donne's abundant learning, for example, his knowledge of Scripture and the Fathers is melted into each sermon, as a learned man, his interest in law, medicine, and science can also be found in his sermons. Like in the poems, John Donne used the metaphors to express his idea of religion and thought of science in the sermons.During the turbulent 17th century, the intermingling of science and religion in England was apparent. Christianity, which for one thousand years had been the leading force in Europe, was losing its dominance, though it was still potent. Modern science, beginning with Nicholas Copernicus (1473-1543), who asserted a heliocentric cosmos, gained momentum. With the discovery of the New World, and the development of the exploration, the origins of this world view emerged full blown in the Scientific Revolution of the late 16th and 17th centuries. During this period, scientists, theologians, philosophers and mathematicians were engaged in a vigorous debate over the natural world.The 17th century witnessed the interaction between science and religion. John Donne, as a poet and a sermon writer can sense the intermingling factors and successfully put all of his thought down in his works, which not only reveal the development of society but also expose this tendency. John Donne lived in the transitional period, the aspects of traditional society were breaking, but the order of new society did not come into being. The religious reformation and new thoughts in science made the people confused. How does John Donne think about the society? From what angle does John Donne see the world which he was living? Through analysis of the features of the three metaphors"world is a sea","world is a book"and"world is a house"in this paper, it can be found that John Donne see the world of his time from the angle of fusion of science and religion.