The Element of persuasion In Do not Go Gentle into the Good night
Do not go gentle into that good night by Dylan Thomas is an intriguing poem filled with numerous stylistic devices to pass his emotional message across the board. Published in 1951, it resonates with various generations and comes across as an epic, relevant, yet powerful piece of poetry. Although rich in language and rhetoric, this essay will discuss the aspect of persuasion found within the poem, which gives it flow and captures the attention of the reader from start until finish through tone and positive message.
Villanelle
The tone of the poem helps the reader to understand and dive deeper into the meaning inner meaning of the poem. The Villanelle poem has French lyrical flow rarely found among English poets. In addition, this type of poem comes from peasant French people, sung in various farms after which the French poets picked it up as a stylistic device for establishing flow (Lord 1). Villanelle possesses five beats and an average of ten syllables in each line of the stanza. In this particular case, Dylan adheres to the rules of the Villanelle specific rhyme system and the format of the entire poem lays the basis for flow throughout the poem. Consequently, the rhyme scheme helps him narrate about his father and emotionally express his love for him. Perusing through the poem, the reader cannot help but take note of the lilt effect that occurs between emphasized and not emphasized words.
For example, ‘Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
Because their words had forked no lighting they
Do not go gentle into that good night.’ (Thomas 12)
As illustrated above, the rhythm arrangement of the poem creates a continuous flow; the reader finishes one line and transits to the next with much ease. Hence, the poem creates consistency and rhyme through its rhyme scheme.
Imagery and metaphoric phrases are common in Dylan Thomas’ poem. It is as if writer makes an effort generate more creativity within the poem. His ability to use imagery language supersedes his narrative capabilities. In the opening sentence, which is also the subject matter and title of the poem reveals his softened opinion on death (Lord 1). For instance, ‘That good night’ refers to his acceptance of death to soften its impact on his life. The word ‘night’ represents death and ‘good’ clearly diffuses the tension of death and establishes solid flow of some sorts. In summary, the ability of writer to expressively adhere to his own stylistic devices gives the entire poem flow.
Apart from imagery and metaphors, he uses personification every time he talks about his father directly. ‘Burn and rave’ is an expressive way of standing firm and giving death or ‘the close of day’ cold shoulder (Janes 78). In addition, the diction in the poem is fluent and makes use of simple words. Furthermore, words with minimal syllables rhyme well and pass the message in a simple straightforward manner. For example, ‘gentle’ or good and other word such as ‘burn’ gives a reader a smooth sail as he or she reads the poem.
Conclusion
The poem by Dylan Thomas achieves its rhythm through its Villanelle structure. The iambic nature permits five beats and ten syllables in each line (Davies 64). Coupled the right dosage of imagery, metaphors and personification, the poet triumphs overshadows the dark cloud of death and gives the reader hope in every line of the poem.
Work cited
Lord, Russell. “‘Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night’ by Dylan Thomas.” Salem Press Encyclopedia of Literature, 2017. EBSCOhost,
Davies, Walford. Dylan Thomas. University of Wales Press 2014
Janes, Hilly. The Three Lives of Dylan Thomas. New York: Biteback Publishing, 2014.
Thomas, Dylan. "Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night." The Collected Poems of Dylan Thomas (New York: New Directions, 1953) (1952): 128.
