The Force that through the Green Fuse Drives the Flower

Poetry | Dylan Thomas
Back to Hub
Contents

How does Dylan Thomas celebrate life over death in his poetry

Premium

How does Dylan Thomas celebrate life over death in his poetry? [2021, 2017, 2015] ✪✪✪   

Dylan Thomas (1914–1953) loved life with all his heart. He never feared death. He saw life as holy, powerful, and full of light. His poems show that death cannot kill the spirit. Through nature, love, and memory, life always wins.

The Power of Life in Nature: In “The Force That Through the Green Fuse Drives the Flower,” Thomas feels a strong life force running through the world. He says,

“The force that through the green fuse drives the flower 

Drives my green age.”

This “force” is the spirit of life. It moves through flowers, trees, water, and human blood. It also brings death, but that death gives new life again. The poet feels that both birth and death are part of the same divine circle. The world is always alive. God’s power never stops moving. So, life continues beyond dea
th.

Life Stronger Than Death: In “A Refusal to Mourn the Death, by Fire, of a Child in London,” Thomas refuses to cry for the dead child. He says,

“After the first death, there is no other.”

He believes death is not an end. The child becomes one with the sea, the corn, and the earth. She becomes part of God’s creation again. Her spirit lives in the “riding Thames” and in the silence of nature. Thomas celebrates the beauty of this return to life. Death here is peaceful and holy, not dark. 

The Cry for Life in “Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night”: In “Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night,” Thomas speaks to his dying father. He cries,

“Rage, rage against the dying of the light.”

Here, “light” means life and hope. The poet asks his father to fight against death. Wise men, good men, wild men, and grave men; all fight for life’s fire. Even in old age, Thomas wants the soul to burn bright. Death may come, but the human spirit must not surrender. Love and passion make life eternal.

Dylan Thomas celebrates life as eternal and holy. He sees it in flowers, rivers, children, and fathers. For him, death cannot defeat love or nature. Life flows in every leaf, star, and heart. His poetry sings that even in death, life still shines.

Continue Reading

Subscribe to access the full content

Upgrade to Premium
From this writer
D
Dylan Thomas
Literary Writer
More Notes

from The Force that through the Green Fuse Drives the Flower