comparative analysis on poems “Do not go gentle into that good night” by Dylan Thomas, “The Times They Are-a-Changin” by Bob Dylan

 comparative analysis on poems “Do not go gentle into that good night” by Dylan Thomas, “The Times They Are-a-Changin” by Bob Dylan

Introduction

This comparative analysis will focus on three poems “Do not go gentle into that good night” by Dylan Thomas, “The Times They Are-a-Changin” by Bob Dylan, and “To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time” by Robert Herrick. The analysis will precisely focus on the concept of carpe diem, similarities, and differences in language (Rhyme and meter) and imagery in the three poems.

Each of these poems can be attributed to the concept of carpe diem through their varying themes. ‘Gather ye rose-buds while ye may,’ is the first line of the “To the virgins, to make much of Time” by Robert Herrick (Herrick, Line 1). It’s a call to the addressee, the virgins, to make most of the day. Do not tarry or waste most of the time because you got one life. Herrick is advising the virgins to enjoy their youth before their beauty fades. The concept of carpe diem is also present in “Do not go gentle into that good night” by Dylan Thomas. Thomas wrote the poem to urge his dying father to fight against death. He wanted him to make the best of the current time and not worry about the future. He wanted his father to know that all men face a common end, but they fight for life nonetheless. “Old age should burn and rave at close of the day” (Thomas, line 2) is basically the purpose of the poem. Thomas persuades his father to realize that no matter what he did in his life, he has every reason to live. “The times are A- changing” by Bob Dylan calls people to be accommodative and accept new orders since times will change. The song shows that change is inevitable, and there is nothing one can do to stop it (Dylan, verse 1).

The poems differ in the use of imagery. Bob Dylan, in his song “the times are a-changing,” uses figures of speech that resemble Biblical prophecies. The Biblical prophecies show that times will change because of the physical appearance of the kingdom of God of the earth in Malachi. Dylan calls mothers and fathers throughout the land to come (Dylan, Verse 4). Contrary, Robert Herrick, in his poem ‘To the virgins, to make much time’ uses the imagery of a metaphor similar to Thomas’s work. This is depicted in the first line in which he calls virgins, flowers. Gathering flowers can be viewed as a metaphor depicting wooing or sex. Robert says, just like flowers wither, the same will happen to their youth. Thus they should make most of it. (Herrick, Line 1, 6, 12, 18) uses the metaphor ‘That good night,’ which shows that Thomas knew that death was right. Thomas also talks of ‘the dying of the light’ (Thomas, Line 3,9,15, 19), which depicts a peaceful surrender. He calls his father to fight against a peaceful end. He puts more emphasis on the importance of living, urging his father to choose life.

The poem “do not go gentle into that good night” by Dylan Thomas and “To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time” by Robert Herrick have similarities in the use of rhyme and meter. The rhyme scheme of “do not go gentle into that good night” is ABA ABA ABA ABA ABAA. The poem has only two rhymes and two refrains (Thomas, p 128). The first line and the third line, which is the refrain, are repeated four times in the poem. The repetition is meant to emphasize the purpose of the poem, showing that one cannot accept death. In the “To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time” by Robert Herrick poem, the first stanza is emphasized by the Rhyme both within the lines (while/smiles, still/will) and at the end (may/today, flying/dying) (Herrick, Stanza 1). The poet wants to convince readers of the certainty of his message through the tightly constructed and highly efficient verse.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the three poems “Do not go gentle into that good night” by Dylan Thomas, “The Times They Are-a-Changin” by Bob Dylan, and “To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time” by Robert Herrick, have shared as well as varying themes, language use, and imagery. The idea of Thomas’s work is to urge his dying father to fight death while Robert, in his work, urges the addressee, virgins, to spend their time well since it will pass. Finally is the song by Bob Dylan, who calls the father, mother, and children to be prepared for changes. Dylan Thomas and Robert Herrick both use rhymes and meter in their poems. This is meant for emphasis on their themes gained through repetition. Bob Dylan uses the imagery of prophecy as opposed to Dylan Thomas and Robert Herrick, who uses the imagery of a metaphor in their poems.

Works Cited

Thomas, Dylan. “Do Not Go Gentle into that good night.” The Collected Poems of Dylan Thomas (New York: New Directions, 1953) (2014): 128.

Dylan, Bob. The times they are a-changing’. Sony music entertainment, 2016.

Herrick, Robert. A selection from the lyrical poems of Robert Herrick. Good Press, 2019.