The Triple Fool

• Plot: The Triple Fool is a poem by John Donne in which the speaker expresses his heartbreak and misery over lost love, revealing the three-fold foolishness that has overtaken him.
• Structure & Language Techniques: The poem, structured in iambic pentameter, utilises rhetorical devices such as paradox and metaphysical conceit to portray the speaker’s emotional turmoil.
• Themes & Linking Poems: The themes prevalent in The Triple Fool are love, loss, and suffering, which are similar to Donne’s other poems like “The Broken Heart” and “The Apparition.”
• Key Quotes: An essential quote from the poem is, “I am two fools, I know, / For loving, and for saying so / In whining poetry.”
• Poet & Context: John Donne is a renowned metaphysical poet whose works often reveal his struggles with love and faith, with The Triple Fool providing insight into Donne’s personal romantic despair.