Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night” by Dylan Thomas
Poem #12
“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.
Dylan Thomas was a Welsh poet who died tragically young but left a powerful legacy of work. This poem, written to Thomas’s dying father, has a strict structure, but an unconventional message.
Thomas encourages his father to rebel and struggle against death, what he calls the “dying of the light.” Although written for his father,
Dylan Thomas himself ironically died the year after his father.
Poetry-Poem 12.1
© 2010: This lesson plan is the property of the Mensa Education & Research Foundation, www.mensafoundation.org. It is provided as a complimentary service to the public. Reproduction and distribution without modification are allowed. Images, links and linked content referenced herein are the property of the originating entities.
Taking it apart
“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.
Thomas sees life as a day – death is the closing of that day, and the dying of
“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.
Dylan Thomas was a Welsh poet who died tragically young but left a powerful legacy of work. This poem, written to Thomas’s dying father, has a strict structure, but an unconventional message.
Thomas encourages his father to rebel and struggle against death, what he calls the “dying of the light.” Although written for his father,
Dylan Thomas himself ironically died the year after his father.
Poetry-Poem 12.1
© 2010: This lesson plan is the property of the Mensa Education & Research Foundation, www.mensafoundation.org. It is provided as a complimentary service to the public. Reproduction and distribution without modification are allowed. Images, links and linked content referenced herein are the property of the originating entities.
Taking it apart
“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.
Thomas sees life as a day – death is the closing of that day, and the dying of