Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night by Dylan Thomas Textual Anaysis
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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 their 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 the 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.”
Textual Analysis
Introduction – The poem “Do not go Gentle into that good night” is written by Dylan Thomas. He was known for the imagery and surrealism in his poems. Dylan Thomas wrote this particular poem on the death of his father. There are many poetic and language devices that are found in the poem and they are used to help the author put their own message about the themes and issues, across to the reader. The devices also help the reader to be able get a response from the poem and to understand the thoughts and views of the poet and the messages that they are trying to send.
Subject Matter – The poem is about death and how precious life is. He is saying that everyone should fight against death even though it cannot be prevent. Like how nightfall cannot be prevented, but he is saying that every one shouldnt give up their life without a fight and that you should still live life to the full and not be afraid of death and that death isnt something you should submit to.
In the first stanza of the poem it is saying that to be old doesnt mean to be weak and to wait for death, but to still live your life like you werent going to die and to “rage against the close of day” and not submit to death.
The second stanza is about the people who know that death is inevitable and that they will end up dying one day and that they may end up in a better place such as heaven. From the second line “Because their words had forked no lightning” could mean that these people have lived by Gods rules and havent committed sins against god. So it has a religious feel to it. But he is still telling them to fight against death because life is worth living.
The third stanza is about the people who were good in life and they did good deeds and that they only did these deeds so they could remembered by them and that is how they want to be remembered. This comes from the lines “Crying how bright/ their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay”. He is also telling them that they should fight against death as well, even if their lives have already being fulfilled.
The fourth stanza is about the men who lived life recklessly and didnt think twice about anything and that this resulted in their downfall. This stanza is also about the people who werent happy with their lifestyle as it says in the first two lines “Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight/ And learn too late, they grieved it on their way,” but he is still telling them to fight against death and not to submit to death even if death seem good as it says in the last line “Do not go gentle into that good night”
The fifth stanza is about men who are near death suffering from sicknesses such as blindness. “Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight”. And that they should still keep on living and that if they dont give up they are still able to live life happily, even if they arent how they used to be. In this example having their sight back but they shouldnt let that beat them down and that they are still able to be happy.
The sixth stanza is him addressing his father up above in heaven as it says “there on the sad height”, or he could be kneeling on the side of his fathers death bed and the line “Curse, bless me now with your fierce tears, I pray” could be him asking his father to show some sign that he is still alive by showing the pain that he is in, because it is a curse for him to see his father like that but it is a blessing for him as well because he knows that he is still alive. The two finale lines “Do not go gentle into that good night/ rage, rage against the dying of the light”. Is of him telling his father not to give up and to fight death because it is better them submitting to death like he is saying about all of the other types of people who are faced with death as well.
Themes and Issues
The themes and issues in the poem. Is the theme of death and dying and the issue that people are faced with when losing a loved one and how they dont want to see them give up and pass away. The poem challenges the idea of what people have about death and that it is a part of life and cannot be prevented but it is telling people not to fear death but to challenge it and not let it win. The poem also uses the metaphor of death being a good night to show that death isnt good or evil and that it is just a part of life but its telling people to keep on living and not to give up.
Poetic