Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night Flashcards
Do not go
Imperative verb –> commands to resist death
Good
Implies the end of suffering
good night…close of day…dying of the light
Euphemism –> connotes the difficulty in accepting impending death
wise men, grave men, good men, wild men
The different types of men bring out the universality of the poem
last wave
The writer presents themselves as ambiguous as “last wave” may connote the last wave of their life
green bay
The colour connotes the fertility of the bay and depicts the opportunity
caught and sang the sun
Metaphor –> evokes living life without boundaries
sad height
Metaphor –> highlights the height of his sadness or the fact that the writer is at the edge of his life
fierce tears, I pray
Oxymoronic assonance –> heightens how he wants to see his father fight with passion and he “prays”, pleading desperation
What is the structure of the poem?
The controlled structure may connote how he wants to control his father’s decisions; lines 3,6,9,12 etc are all multiples of 3 and show a refrain of desperation
Why are the men described as wise?
The men are described “wise” as they are able to accept that death is inevitable and are willing to let go of it
How does the poet introduce a volta?
Volta —> expresses the tone shift by addressing the father directly which is further highlighted with the personal pronoun “I”
What is the type of poem?
Vilanelle
blinding sight
Oxymoron –> Tells us how it’s decaying physical sight but still gaining insight
burn and rave
Assonance and plosive –> Heightens the bold imagery of the fight against death
