Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night—Dylan Thomas

Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night—Dylan Thomas

[ Poem and summary for Literature students] S. Sreekumar

The poem is at the same time a defiance of death and also an acceptance. The rhyming words ‘light’ and ‘night’ contrasts life and death.

It is a very personal poem written for Thomas’s father, who died in 1952. Thomas urges his father to fight against death and dissolution. At the same time he admits the inevitability of death. Thomas greatly respected his father for his strength of character and independence of judgment. The imagery of light and darkness in the poem is particularly important.

The attitude of different people towards death also is represented in the poem. The poem which is in praise of life and an acceptance of death ends on an ironical note when Thomas asks his father both to bless and curse him.

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.

good night= repeated several times in the poem. It is a paradox. Night is symbolic of death. It is used with several shades of meaning. Good night is farewell suggestive of death. It also means that death is good and final.

Burn and rave=burn with life and rave with death.

The poet exhorts his father not to go into death gently. In old age one should burn with life and rave with the fear of death. One must be angry at the thought of impending death.

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.

wise men=philosophers, dark is right=death is right, death is inevitable. words had forked no lightning= to fork lightning with  words, to write poetry.

Philosophers know that death is inevitable. Even when their words are not listened to by anyone, they advise not to go gentle into death.

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.

Frail=weak, green bay= stands for the pleasures of life. Caught and sang the sun=had a competition with the sun.

The poet gives the response of good men. They feel frustrated, having avoided the pleasures of life. Men of action tried to keep pace with the sun. They learn too late that life has slipped by. Do not accept death meekly.

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.

Grave men= is a pun, those who are aware of death, the term also means ‘serious people’.

Blinding sight=divine illumination or poetic illumination.

Serious minded people are conscious about the transitory nature of life. They see with divine illumination. Blind eyes could blaze like meteor and be happy. The reference is to his father’s blindness.

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.

Thomas ends the poem asking his father to bless and curse him. Standing on the sad height (heaven), the father must bless him for it is the natural thing to bless a son. It is equally natural that the father must curse him who is going to take his place. Both the curse and blessing are equal for the poet. The father has the right to do anything with his son.