Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night

The poem consists of six stanzas that follow a clear and simple rhyme scheme, as is characteristic of the villanelle form: ABA ABA ABA ABA ABA ABAA. The repetitive end rhymes lend the poem a chanting, song-like rhythm, imitating the sound of a prayer or a spell. The otherworldly quality of the rhythm of the poem enhances the extraordinary nature of the speaker’s plea to their audience; after all, death is an inevitability of life that no mortal being can defy.

The villanelle form, of which this poem is widely appreciated as an excellent example, has its origins in the Renaissance period in Italy and Spain as a dance-song. Historically, the villanelle contained simple themes of a pastoral or rustic nature, and Thomas’s use of the form in the English language demonstrates the power of the villanelle’s repetitive framework. The combined effect of the incantatory rhythm and form of the poem with the existential themes heightens the pathos of the poem, giving the reader the opportunity to share the speaker’s highly emotional experience. Left to confront the eventual and unavoidable loss of their father, the speaker expresses their grief through a series of pleas that ask for the impossible to happen.