“Break of Day” is an exceptional kind of love poem both for its time and for a contemporary reader. Indeed, within the tradition of love lyrics that dated three centuries before Donne’s time, the premise of this love poem is radical. Here is a love poem in which no one kisses anyone, no one makes protestations of affection, no one swoons in the arms of their beloved. And it is a distinctly erotic poem in which no one makes love, no one holds each other, no pulsating, heaving body parts are engaged. In fact, it is a love poem where the only thing the lovers actually do is quarrel and part company.

In this, Donne’s poem works a twist on conventional love lyrics. It is a reactive poem, not an active poem. Imagine, the poem argues, given the intensity of their quarrel and how reluctant one lover is to even leave the bed where they have made love, imagine the emotions they feel, imagine the love they made. It is as if the reader measures the depth of an explosion by picking through the rubble. It is a morning after poem that hints at the wonderful night before.