Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night Analysis

In “Do Not Go Gentle into that Good Night”, Thomas describes men as wise, good, wild, and grave, and displays their perspective about death. For wise men, “because their words had forked no lightning, they / do not go gentle into that good night” (5-6). The metaphor in the line reflects wise men’s regret in life as their words, the ability of intelligent people, forked no lightning, meaning they did not leave any significant marks in history before dying. Therefore as good night, a metaphor for death, approaches, wise men resist dying to satisfy their discontent, and all other men convey similar perspectives. However, since night will come anyways, Thomas know men cannot escape death, so he agonizes for his incompetence in saving his father. Comparably in “One Art,” Bishop claims “so many things seemed filled with the intent / to be lost that their loss is no disaster” (2-3). The disappeared objects metaphorize Bishop’s loss of precious memory fragment, such as losing the mothers’ watch representing the farewell with her mother. At first, Bishop expresses she is fine with things vanishing. Yet overtime, the materials grow more substantial, and ultimately, when Bishop separates with her beloved, she notes “it may look like (Write it!) a disaster” (19), mentioning loss is indeed a disaster. She knows the farewell was

Wise men know that death is appropriate, but they do not embrace it. These wise men fight death because they feel their words have not been adequate enough to touch or illuminate others. The son creates a visual image of the inadequacy wise men feel upon realizing their words have not enlightened others--"their words had forked no lightning." The son also mentions good men who do not die peacefully. These men despair that their feeble deeds did not accomplish enough. Even though they were good men, they feel they could have done so much more if given the time.

The first group that Thomas depicts are wise men. In the stanza’s first line, “Though wise men at their end know dark is right,” (4) he proposes that they all agree that death is the final part life’s natural cycle and that they contain the wisdom to know that they ought to accept it. Nevertheless, the next line argues that they war against it because they lack the legacy that exist long after one has succumb to death. Thomas uses line (5), “Because their words had forked no lighting” to convey that they grip onto life because they want to leave a print on the sands of time.

In “Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night,” Dylan Thomas amplifies the human spirit by the usage symbolism and metaphors to reveal internal struggles that we may face in life, as well as the loss of a loved one, something that we all can relate to. While trying to encourage his father to fight for his last moments in life, the poet uses the “night” as a symbol for death. Another symbol that is used is the word “gentle” and “Old,” these words give meaning that the old should not go so easily into death. “Rage” and “Burn” are also used, suggesting that the internal flames of the dying should rage and burn like a wild fire till the end of the dying light, or in this case, his father’s last moments.

This highlights the ultimate paradox of the human spirit, the infinite wisdom gained with age: death should be seen as a friend guiding the future beyond life, but he becomes an enemy. Death becomes something all avoid, an inability to accept that old age should not “burn and rave at close of day” (Thomas 2). The narrator, in his fit of rage is unable to see that his father has broken the status quo of life and has accepted the life he has lived, exposing the fragility of Thomas’

Throughout the poem, the author urges people to fight against the calming release of death and to live life in a way that leaves a lasting impression. In the poem " Do not go gentle into that good night," the author, Dylan Thomas, utilizes the looming theme of mortality to spark reader's inner desire to seize the day by using vivid examples of opportunities never had, and dynamic metaphors of life.

Generally, anyone who reads this villanelle will see that Thomas is telling, more so demanding g that his father should resist death. The theme of fighting is expressed through Thomas’s description of four types of men in four different terecets. These tercets describe “wise”, “good”, “wild”, and “grave” men who all feel that their lives have been unfulfilled

“Passed”, “No longer with us”, “kicked the bucket”, and so on can all be used as descriptions of the mysteriously feared death. Both John Donne and Dylan Thomas write these poems based on the loss of a loved one. Although they both let death affect them, how it affects them is contradicting. Although John Donne’s “A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning,” was sympathetically caring, the theme of death displayed by a personal lesson, imagery, and repetition can also be seen in the aggressively abrasive poem “Do not go gentle into that good night” by Dylan Thomas. Both authors have different emotions towards the loss of a loved one and how their life is going to be after this death.

In the poem “Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night,” Dylan Thomas uses metaphors and a change in tone to establish that when people reach the verge of death, they must not allow themselves to slip away quietly, but fight, not because they might live, but because it is more honorable than simply giving up. The speaker could be either an unknown person lamenting the loss of their father or Thomas himself, as his father died of pneumonia before Thomas wrote this poem. Furthermore, Thomas begins the poem by telling his dying father that “old age should burn and rave at close of day;” (2). “Close of day” introduces an extended metaphor comparing a human lifespan to a day, something that rises and eventually

The motif of light/dark and night/day is very prevalent in every stanza. This contrast adds to the visual aspect of this poem that makes it so engaging. In this poem, light and day also serve as an extended metaphor for life throughout the poem. Accordingly, night and darkness serve as a metaphor for death. The motif of men is also used to add a dimension to the poem that stops it from seeming too dull. Thomas refers to several different types of men: wise, good, grave, and lastly, his own father. Each type of man is different, yet they all understand that they need to fight against death. By incorporating a variety of different men who were likely to live different types of lives, the author adds another dimension that reiterates his message to his

Thomas uses the experiences of the noble men in the third stanza to show that they were contempt with what they did with their life but acknowledge that there is still more time for them. The noble men are to “rage against the dying of the light” as they are on their last wave (9). They reminisce on their pasts together and become aware that although they are near their end they can still accomplish more in life. Moreover, they approach death with hesitation because they feel like they haven’t done the most they can with their life. They fight against death to try and utilize the time they still have

In the poem “Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night” the poet addresses the defenseless state to which old individuals are rendered to, and urges them to not give in unobtrusively to death and battle against its approach. The persona speaks in this poem as the son of a dying father as line sixteen states “And you my father”. The old man, at his deathbed receives encouragement with pleads form his son to hold on to life. The purpose of this poem is to encourage older people to fight against death.

There is also a metaphor of sight and blindness in stanza 5, which “reflects Thomas’s understanding of poetic knowledge and its limitations” (Napierkowski and Ruby 54). According to Napierkowski and Ruby, this example shows that even though the poem was written for his father, Thomas addressed his own life goals and restrictions. Thomas also never delivered this poem to his father, which further supports how it could be perceived that the man might have written some parts of this poem for himself. According to Jahn Hochman, if it is considered that the poem is written “more for the benefit of Thomas himself than for his father… then “Do Not Go Gentle” becomes less of a poem of defiance than a poem of paralysis and pain” (Hochman 58). He is saying that if Thomas truly did add stanzas that relate to his own life, then not only is he urging his father to resist death,

Thomas’ Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night has a underlying message that one should fight and resist death as hard as they can. His poem also consist of his own personal experience where his father was also dying as well. This poem evoked my pity for him because I can feel his sadness when he witness a close family member passing away at a old age. Although I did not go through the pain of losing an elder family member, I witnessed my friend’s fatal car accident at a birthday party last year. I had a trauma for about a month because I was so overwhelmed by emotions and kept blaming myself of what happened. During my friend’s coma, I kept praying that he will fight and survive, likewise, Thomas tries

As the narrator begs his father to fight to stay alive, he brings up example after example of various people who do not give up on their deathbeds. He compares these examples to his father to show how he feels and how he looks up to his father. He first describes how “wise men at their end know dark is right, // Because their words had forked no lightning they // Do not go gentle into that good night” (Thomas 4). These men understand that death is natural, but they have not made their mark in the world yet and thus try to fight death until they have. His second example is essentially the same, but with “good men” instead. His third example is about “Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight, // And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way”(Thomas 10). These are the men who took life for granted and do not realize how unfulfilled their lives are until they are on their deathbeds. All of these examples are the son’s way of pleading with his father to hold on. His final example asks his father to try and be happy. He says, “Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight // Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay” (Thomas 13). He is trying to encourage his father and tell him that being blind is not a good enough reason to simply give up on life and wait for death. His last words to his father are quite moving as he says, “Curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears, I pray, // Do not go gentle into that good night. // Rage, rage against the dying of the light” (Thomas 17). The son does not care if his father curses or blesses him so long as he fights to live and does not give up. In a way, he is behaving quite selfishly because it is not his life to dictate, but at the same time, it is a clear depiction of how frightening death is for everyone, regardless of your