Into That Night

There are many poets that have been writing some of the most amazing poems in the world for years upon years. Poetry is a great way to write about some of the most meaningful things in one’s life, without directly having to state what you’re trying to say some of the times. A lot of poets write about events within their lives as well as things in everyday life in the lives of everyone in the world. The poems “Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night” by Dylan Thomas (1914-1953) and “Psalm of Life” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882) both use great diction and varying tone in their poems to portray their individual perspectives about life.

In Dylan Thomas' "Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night," the speaker is a son talking to his aging father and pleading with him to fight against death. The son knows that death is the inevitable end to every life, but feels one should not give up to death too easily. By using metaphor, imagery, and repetition, Thomas reinforces the son's message that aging men see their lives with sudden clarity and realize how they might have lived happier, more productive lives. These men rail against fate, fighting for more time to set things right.

Alcoholic, neurotic, and adulterous: one would never expect these traits to be present in one of the most influential Welsh poet in literary history. Born in October 27, 1914 in Swansea, Wales, Dylan’s father was a local English professor and his mother a seamstress. David Thomas would read Shakespeare to Dylan in his early youth, consequently, sparking Dylan’s interest in poems and other rhythmic ballads of W.B. Yeats and Edgar Allan Poe. Being enraptured by literature, Dylan neglected his studies later dropping out to become a reporter at the South Wales Daily Post. Only 18 months later, Dylan left to work on his poetry full time and writing some of his most revered works such as the poem of my analysis, “And Death Shall Have No

Thomas realizes it is human nature to take life for granted; until death approaches. Thomas wrote this poem for his father, to tell him that there is so much more for him here, living, to do. The only way to deter death is through fury and frenzy. Death comes too quickly for most people and only with "rage" can death be defied.

The theme of Dylan Thomas and W.B Yeats poems are about death. In Do Not Go “Gentle Into The Good Night” the author is telling his father not to die and to stay strong. He does this by repeating ”Do not go gentle into that good night. Rage, rage against the dying of the light.” In ” When You Are Old “The narrator said” And pace upon the mountain overhead And his face amid a crowd of stars.” The narrator is looking down on her from when he passed away.

William James, an American philosopher and psychologist once said “believe that life is worth living and your belief will help create the fact.” Life, regardless of how close it lies to death, is worth keeping. The poem “Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night”, by Dylan Thomas is a son’s appeal to a fading father. He shows his father that men from all walks of life confront death, however, they still war against it. Thomas uses figurative language to classify men into four different categories to persuade his father to realize that a life, regardless of how it was lived, should be fought for.

When reviewing the work of Dylan Thomas, one can see that he changes his style of language, such as using metaphors and imagery, to fit each poem accordingly. In the poems, "Do Not Go Gentle into that Good Night," and "Fern Hill," which are the poems I will be looking at in this presentation, he uses different techniques and language to make each poem more effective to the reader. I have chosen these works because they are his most well known, I shall start off by reading the poem “Do Not Go Gentle…” even if it was written after Fern Hill, as it is the most famous of all his works. "Do Not Go Gentle into that Good Night" is addressed to Thomas' father, giving him advice

Dylan Thomas's poem "Do not go gentle into that good night" and John Milton's poem "When I consider how my light is spent" were written during times of trouble in their respective poet's life. Thomas was faced with losing his father to death; Milton was dealing with becoming completely blind at the age of forty-three. As each poet struggles to deal with the crisis occurring in his life, he makes a statement about the relationship between mankind and God, the reasons that God gives and then takes away certain gifts, and the proper way to live life. Thomas and Milton ended up with contrasting answers to these

Contrary to Frost?s peaceful, luring diction and images, Dylan Thomas uses forceful, irate words to deter death. "No poet gives a greater sense of the feel of life" as Thomas, who provokes the reader to "rage" against death (Ackerman 407). Thomas conveys a resistance towards death with images of fury and fighting, as in "do not go gentle." Vivacious words as "blaze" and "burn" intensify desires to live on and to the fullest. With images of "good night" and "dying of the light," Thomas conveys death as the "end where only darkness prevails" (Savage 381). He takes his "stand within concrete, particular existence, he places birth and death at the poles of his vision" (Savage 381). "Life [for Thomas] begins at birth and ceases at death" therefore leaving no room for a previous life or an after life (Savage 381). Excessive images of anger and rage towards death exemplify the passion Thomas feels for life. His villanelle repeats the theme of living and fury through the most forceful two lines, "do not go gentle into that good night" and "rage, rage against the dying of the light." Contrasting images of light and darkness in the poem create the warmth of living and the coldness in death, so as to shun people from choosing the bleak, bitter frigidity of death.

William Cullen Bryant and Dylan Thomas were both influential writers of their time. They created poetical works of a variety of things. The entity that aided to the influence the authors had was the passion they had for their works. The issue that these two men felt strongest about was death. Bryant and Thomas were both inspired by the topic and composed a poem on it. William Cullen Bryant wrote Thanatopsis, his view on death, in the early 19th century. He was best known for his romantic style of literature which mainly involved his views, on religion and faith. In the 1930’s and 1940’s Dylan Thomas also became a well-known poet. He wrote, Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night, this signified to his opinion on death as well.

By comparing these two poems, Thomas and Dickinson use of personification, alliteration, and repetition all to convey the theme death is inevitable. As Dylan Thomas’s “Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night” progresses, Thomas shows different viewpoints on facing death. In the beginning, he explains how people should not accept death, but they should fight it (Thomas 1-2). Some people,

Accomplishments, not longevity, dictate a person’s importance and value in society. Before Dylan Thomas’ premature death at the age of 39, he left a tremendous mark on the world. His poems gained traction with readers early in his life, and his continued popularity reflects the power contained in his words. Thomas had the ability to capture the attention of many with his passionate verse and powerful emotion. Born and raised in Wales, his ethnicity distinguishes him from the vast majority of poets in the literary canon. Thomas is interesting and worth the eye of intellectuals because his work was not characteristic of his time. Unlike typical modernist writing, Thomas' compositions lacked context to social issues, and romanticism characterizes

When a word or a phrase is repeated over and over again, it tends to become stronger in meaning and it sticks in the subconscious. Welsh writer and poet Dylan Thomas was born in 1914 and died in 1953. He wrote numerous works throughout his lifetime and exclusively wrote in the English language. One such work was titled “Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night.” In the poem, the narrator of an unknown gender urges the reader to not give up on life and to passionately fight to keep living. The main literary device Thomas uses is repetition, and he uses this tool with certain phrases to give emphasis and to make the meaning of his words stronger.

A man “who [held] a beast, an angel and a madman in [him].” This accurately describes Wales-born Dylan Thomas, world renowned poet and writer. A developmental wordsmith of his time, Thomas presented the people with evolutionary compositions originated from his own personal experiences and conceptions. Although Thomas’ poetry portrays several messages involving loss of innocence and youth, his more prominent style bases itself around the Freudian concepts of psychoanalytic criticism. Observed through his opaque style and endless fascination of death, it can be concluded that the psychoanalytic impressions in Thomas’ stream of consciousness declare death to be inferior. This is made even

Poetry is constructed through the life experiences of a poet and the devout ideals and lessons that they come into contact with. Dylan Thomas was a poet during the early 1900’s that was able to compose these devout idea’s so magnificently that his poems are still studied and praised today. The poetry of Dylan Thomas reached such great success due to his colorful history, his ability to involve his history in his poems, and the complex emotion his poems were able to convey despite disapproval.