Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night
by Dylan Thomas
Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
Though 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.
Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,
And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
And you, my father, there on that sad height,
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.
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
Though 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.
Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,
And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
And you, my father, there on that sad height,
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.
In this poem I think Dylan Thomas is trying to convince his father no to die easily. Throughout the poem he uses several metaphors to try and help him convince his father not to die quietly and keep on fighting. In the first stanza he compares life to a flame that should keep on burning through the night. I'm pretty sure that the night is a symbol for death. Thomas is saying that even though we get old we should not resign to death, we should keep on living, or at least try to. In the next stanza he is saying that even wise men that are experienced and pretty smart know that they are going to die they don't resign and die, they continue to fight and live. The third stanza is a little confusing to me, I think it is about how some mens' accomplishments aren't worth much and when they realize it they give up. In the fourth stanza is about people that lived fast and crazy lives and find out that they don't know the meaning of their lives, and that might make them want to die or something. He thinks that they should keep on living, until they figure out their life, I guess. I think the fifth stanza is talking about the same thing as the last one. In the last one Dylan Thomas is pleading to his father to not give up on life and keep fighting death. He doesn't want his father to just survive, but afterwards to really live. I think that this poem isn't about dying, but I think that it is about leading a fulfilling and strong life. I liked it, I really appreciated the way Thomas showed how he feels about life and death. I guess I'll try "not to go gentle into that good night" and I'll try to "rage, rage against the dying of the light."
Cool poem. I definitely agree that it is important not to just lay down and die. If we've worked so hard for what we have, why be so quick to give it all up? And, like Alex said, Thomas is also addressing the fact that there is so much more to living than just surviving day to day, this is something that we should all remind ourselves of every now and then. All in all, good stuff.
ReplyDeleteI liked this poem a lot too. I think you're right about how Dylan Thomas is talking about resisting death and fighting it rather than accepting it quietly. Towards the end of the poem I realized how personal it is for him because he wants his father to fight death and be that young vibrant man he used to be. I think Dylan Thomas is encouraging all men who used to be strong to "rage against death" because they are too important to just go gently into the "night" of death. I like how Dylan Thomas thinks, so when I die, I'll make sure to go out with a bang too. Maybe we could plan something crazy for when that time comes if we're still friends when we're about to die.
ReplyDeleteI already loved this poem, but your response and other students' comments made me appreciate the poem even more. Nice work!
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