Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night By Dylan Thomas

For the love of words. According to Dylan Thomas, “The first poems I knew were nursery rhymes, and before I could read them for myself, I had come to love just the words of them, the words alone.” (Thomas and Jones XV). Thomas felt that poetry was something to be read for fun and should be an overall pleasurable experience for the reader. His views include questionable thoughts about poetry, especially from a famous poet. Many components played a role in the development of Dylan Thomas’s literary works; however, one component that made a substantial impact on almost every piece Thomas wrote was his childhood and how he grasps on to that idea of playfulness and simplicity throughout his life.

Thomas started writing as a young boy and, eventually,
The title reveals that one should not give up without a fight. In summary, the poem talks about how one should fight death and live their life to the fullest because life is so precious; all life is precious. At the end of the poem, the reader discovers that the poem is much more personal to Thomas as he reveals that his own father is dying (Thomas). From a child’s point of view, all things can be defeated, including death; nothing is impossible. This also is what Thomas views. The repeated rhyme structure of “Rage, rage against the dying of the light/ Do not go gentle into that good night” (lines 3 and 6 Thomas), engraves the idea of fighting death into the reader’s mind and the fact that death can make one mad and insane. Although the attitude throughout the poem is very somber, it is also urgent as if action needs to be taken right away. There is a shift between each of the six stanzas and a large shift between the fifth and sixth stanza, where we learn about Thomas’s father. The overall theme taken away from the poem is that death can be fought long and hard, but in the end, it is unavoidable. Thomas believes that, like a child, death can be avoided. While this may be true, death will always come. For such a literary genius, Thomas has a childish point of view thinking one can fight death and defeat
“He became drunk, he borrowed money and did not return it, he stole his hosts’ clothes and vandalised their houses, he propositioned women and went to bed with as many as he could.” (Lycett 3). He was a drunken womanizer with no interest in anything except for himself. He follows the same pattern as any celebrity by earning money and then turning around to abuse his privileges of it and buy alcohol or other substances. Thomas knew this was wrong to do as he saw that it was hurting his career and more importantly, himself and his family. “My main task has been to explain how the public wild boy...could co-exist with the private poet of such sensitivity.” (Lycett 2). With this mentioned, Lycett says,“He recognised the conflicting sides to his personality and sought to reconcile them through poetry.” (Lycett 2). Thomas found his release through words, the things he had cherished since he was a small boy. Words allowed him to show how he truly felt about society and societal views, rather than his actions when he was drinking or sleeping with other women. “I hold a beast, an angel, and a madman in me, and my enquiry is as to their working, and my problem is their subjugation and victory, and downthrow and upheaval, and my effort is their self-expression.” (Lycett 2). Thomas says this as a truth to who he is. He knows he makes wrong decisions, but he will continue to do so until it costs him his life,