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Do not go gentle into that good night, |
Though wise men at their end know dark is right, |
Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright |
Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight, |
Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight |
And you, my father, there on the sad height, |
A poem by Dylan Thomas to his dying father. The point of the poem is basically to not give up in the face of despair. It's related to a Rousing Speech, albeit more of the passionate kind than the stirring kind.
The poem is untitled, with the first line being the unofficial one.
Contains Examples Of:[]
- Do Not Go Gentle: The Trope Namer.
Mentioned in:[]
Film[]
- Against the Dying of the Light.
- Appears in mangled form in the Rousing Speech in Independence Day.
The President: "We will not go quietly into the night!" |
- Referenced in Glory Daze:
Jack: "Let's rage at the dying of the light a little bit." |
- From The Rundown:
Declan: [right before a van blows up during a gun fight] Rage, rage... against the dying of the light... for there shall be no mercy... for any force that stands... blocking this path of his righteousness! BOOM-SHAKA-LAKA-TA-DA! |
- Rodney Dangerfield's character in Back to School recites the poem leading to his moment of triumph during his examination to avoid expulsion.
- Dangerous Minds featured this poem being recited back to the depressed teacher by her (remaining) students. She had been ready to quit, feeling broken by the loss and deaths of several students, but those who were still there reminded her that she had made a difference for them and they still needed her.
"Why did you change your mind about leaving?" |
Literature[]
- The title of George R. R. Martin's novel Dying Of The Light is taken from this poem. It's appropriate, taking place on a dying planet, among people of a dying culture and revolving around dying or dead relationships. It is not a cheerful novel.
- The last stanza appears as an Epigraph for the Tennessee Williams play Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, which is about a man whose father is dying.
Live Action TV[]
- Quoted in the Doctor Who episode "The Shakespeare Code."
- "Dying of the Light" is the title of an episode of Heroes.
- Referenced in the title of Roseanne's series finale.
Music and Sound Effects[]
- Anaal Nathrakh uses "Against the Dying of the Light" as the title for the last track on their album Domine Non Es Dignus, which uses the poem as lyrics.
- Compliments of Gus put the poem to music on their album "There and Somewhere Here".
- Quoted in the Sleepytime Gorilla Museum song "Sleep Is Wrong".
Video Games[]
- It's roughly quoted in one of the flashbacks in Final Fantasy XIII, when Lightning and Sazh meet for the first time while getting in line for the Purge train.
Sazh: "You don't seem to be someone to go gently into that silent night." |