Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night Group

Question:


numbed
Student
High School - 10th Grade

How does the poet convey the sense of persuasion in "Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night"?

What textual evidence is there to support it?

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Posted by numbed on Tuesday February 24, 2009 at 6:48 AM and tagged with do not go gentle into that good night, persuasion, style, themes.

Answers:


  1. troutmiller Teacher
    High School - 12th Grade

    eNotes Editor

    Dylan Thomas uses repetition in his poem to persuade his subject(s). He repeats "do not go gentle into that good night" several times.  He also says "Rage, rage against the dying of the light" four times. This repetition really pounds into the reader's mind.

    Along with repetition, Thomas uses vivid action words such as "rage," "blaze," "burn," "fierce," and "rave" to get his point across.  These vivid words give the poem power that it wouldn't otherwise have.  His passion in this poem comes through clearly because of his word choice.  And these words are in every stanza, not just one or two.  The fact that he saves the last stanza for his father, then makes it even more persuasive since it is personal to him.  It draws the reader in to understand why he is so adamant about the subject fighting for his life.

    Sources:
    http://www.enotes.com/go-gentle/summary
    http://www.enotes.com/go-gentle/themes

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    Posted by troutmiller on Tuesday February 24, 2009 at 8:35 AM