Final answer:
Death in Donne's 'Death be not proud' is personified as a boastful entity, but the poem diminishes its power by showing it as a servant to fate and a temporary state before eternal life.
Step-by-step explanation:
In John Donne's poem 'Death be not proud', death is personified as a proud being that glories in its perceived power. However, Donne undermines this power by characterizing death as ultimately weaker than it seems. Death is depicted as a slave to other forces such as chance, sickness, and war, implying that it does not act of its own volition.
Furthermore, Donne asserts that death does not truly kill people, as it is the gateway to eternal life. This characterization serves the resolution of the poem by reducing the fear of death. The poem concludes with the idea that death itself will die, and humans will achieve immortal life, thereby rendering death impotent.