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 is called the tenor. This word means