"Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night" 286, pg 336

            “Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night” is a poem written by a son to his father as his beloved hero is dying.  He is pleading with his father not to give up the fight and succumb to death.  He talks of different types of men: wise, good, wild, grave, and then the best of all, his father.  Each type of man would not go gently into the darkness of death, but would “rage, rage against the dying of the light”.  That line and the title itself are commands repeated by the son.  From this perspective, the father seems to have lived a life of valiancy, and although it is his father’s time and old age has coming knocking at his doorstep, the son begs the father to not give up.  Having said that, he also desires what is in the best interest of his father.  He does not want him to suffer, but rather, to fight; and if that battle is lost, it is more than permissible, for he fought until the bitter end.  Furthermore, embrace death for all its worth; do not just resign to it.

This powerful villanelle arouses immediacy and intimacy.  A very close family friend of mine passed away due to cancer last night.  He fought courageously and whole-heartedly, for himself and for his family.  He was the father of two children, right around my age.  Picturing this poem, I see the image of my good friends sitting beside their father’s bedside until his final moments, asking him to make every breath count, just as the son does in the poem toward his father.  Every moment is a blessing, and they all had asked their patriarch to not give up the fight.  Ultimately, I presume in the poem as well, the man passes away.  However, they do not succumb to death.  They embraced life, fought bravely like they had all their lives, and marched humbly on into that “Good Night”.