A Valediction of Forbidding Mourning: The Truth about Mourning In the poem "A Valediction of Forbidding Mourning" by John Donne the persona is trying to convey a message to his lover that although they are going to be separated they will still have a union of love. In this poem, the persona attempts to persuade his lover to remain faithful during his absence. Donne uses many metaphors in this poem. A metaphor is the use of a word denoting one kind of object or idea in place of another to suggest likeness between them. It also equates two different things. There is the subject matter, which