Do not go gentle into that good night - wikipedia Do not go gentle into that good night `` Do not go gentle into that good night '' is a poem in the form of a villanelle, and the most famous work of Welsh poet Dylan Thomas ( 1914 -- 1953 ). Though first published in the journal Botteghe Oscure in 1951, it was written in 1947 when he was in Florence with his family. It was published, along with other stories previously written, as part of his In Country Sleep, And Other Poems in 1952. It has been suggested that it was written for Thomas ' dying father, although he did not die until just before Christmas 1952. It has no title other than its first line, `` Do not go gentle into that good night '', a line which appears as a refrain throughout. Its other refrain is `` Rage, rage against the dying of the light ''. The poem currently remains under copyright. Notable Use in popular culture It was used as the text for the 1954 In Memoriam Dylan Thomas ( Dirge - Canons and Song ) for tenor and chamber ensemble, by Igor Stravinsky. The piece was written soon after Thomas ' death and first performed in 1954. It was the inspiration for three paintings by Swansea - born painter and print - maker Ceri Richards, in 1954, 1956, and 1965, respectively. The title of George R.R. Martin 's 1977 novel Dying of the Light references a line from the poem. It is the subject of a 1979 tone poem for wind ensemble by Elliot del Borgo. In the 1986 film Back to School Thornton Melon played by Rodney Dangerfield recites the poem during an exam board. John Cale set the poem to orchestral music for his album Words for the Dying, released in 1989. In the 1996 film Independence Day, the President makes a rousing speech as he prepares to lead the attack against the alien invaders, adapting Thomas ' line, saying, `` We will not go quietly into the night ''. It is used as a main inspiration for the protagonist of the 2010 Ally Condie book Matched, the first of a trilogy by that name. In Christopher Nolan 's 2014 movie Interstellar it is used repeatedly by Michael Caine 's character Professor John Brand, as well as by several other supporting characters. Leading actors Matthew McConaughey and Anne Hathaway are sent into hyper sleep with the final words `` Do not go gentle into that good night. '' In 2015 episode of Doctor Who, `` The Magician 's Apprentice '', Clara Oswald, played by Jenna Coleman, quotes the first line of this poem when she discovers where the Doctor is and what he 's up to. It is cited by G - Eazy in `` Intro '' on his 2015 album When It 's Dark Out. Notes Jump up ^ COPYRIGHT : from The Poems of Dylan Thomas, published by New Directions. Copyright © 1952, 1953 Dylan Thomas. Copyright © 1937, 1945, 1955, 1962, 1966, 1967 the Trustees for the Copyrights of Dylan Thomas. Copyright © 1938, 1939, 1943, 1946, 1971 New Directions Publishing Corp. References ^ Jump up to : `` Dylan Thomas ''. Academy of American Poets. He took his family to Italy, and while in Florence, he wrote In Country Sleep, And Other Poems ( Dent, 1952 ), which includes his most famous poem, `` Do not go gentle into that good night. '' Jump up ^ Ferris, Paul ( 1989 ). Dylan Thomas, A Biography. New York : Paragon House. p. 283. ISBN 1 - 55778 - 215 - 6. Jump up ^ `` Dylan Thomas : Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night ''. BBC Wales. 6 November 2008. Archived from the original on 27 November 2012. Retrieved 18 December 2010. Jump up ^ * Thomas, David N. ( 2008 ). Fatal Neglect : Who Killed Dylan Thomas ?. Seren. p. 19. ISBN 978 - 1 - 85411 - 480 - 8. Jump up ^ `` Do not go gentle into that good night Academy of American Poets ''. Poets.org. Retrieved 1 September 2015. Jump up ^ Keller, Hans ( 1955 ). `` In Memoriam Dylan Thomas : Strawinsky 's Schoenbergian Technique ''. Tempo ( 35 ) : 13 -- 20. access - date = requires url = ( help ) Jump up ^ `` Ceri Richards : ' Do not go gentle into that good night ' 1956 ''. tate.org.uk/. Retrieved 22 October 2013. Jump up ^ `` Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night '', Copyright 1979, Shawnee Press Jump up ^ Schaeffer, John ( October 27, 2015 ). `` Five Songs For Dylan Thomas ''. NPR. Retrieved 16 August 2017. Jump up ^ Mair, Jan ( 1998 ). `` American rules, OK : Difference and otherness in ' Independence Day ' ''. Futures. 30 ( 10 ) : 981 -- 991. doi : 10.1016 / s0016 - 3287 ( 98 ) 00100 - 1. ( Subscription required ( help ) ). Jump up ^ Wade, Chris ( 5 November 2014 ). `` '' Do not go gentle into that good night '' in Interstellar, Back to School, and many other movies : the supercut ( VIDEO ) ``. Slate. Jump up ^ `` The Magician 's Apprentice : The Fact File ''. BBC. Retrieved 10 May 2017. Jump up ^ Thompson, Ben ( 2015 - 12 - 06 ). `` G - Eazy : When It 's Dark Out review -- almost a crossover home run ''. The Guardian. ISSN 0261 - 3077. Retrieved 2017 - 08 - 18. Dylan Thomas ( works ) Works A Child 's Christmas in Wales Portrait of the Artist as a Young Dog Under Milk Wood ( radio play ) Rebecca 's Daughters ( screenplay ) Poems 18 Poems Deaths and Entrances `` And death shall have no dominion '' `` Do not go gentle into that good night '' `` Fern Hill '' `` In my Craft or Sullen Art '' `` The Force That Through the Green Fuse Drives the Flower '' Related Caitlin Thomas ( wife ) Aeronwy Thomas ( daughter ) Gwilym Marles ( paternal granduncle ) The Kardomah Gang Cultural depictions The Boathouse Dylan Thomas Centre Dylan Thomas Theatre Dylan Thomas Trail Laugharne Set Fire to the Stars ( 2014 film ) A Poet in New York ( 2014 television film ) Dominion ( 2016 film ) Death and mortality in art Themes Carpe diem Consolatio Danse Macabre Death and the Maiden Lamentation of Christ Macabre Memento mori Mono no aware Sic transit gloria mundi Ubi sunt Personifications of death Vanitas Forms Death mask Elegy Funerary art Funerary text Lament Memorial Post-mortem photography Requiem Tomb Tragedy Wreath Artwork Architecture Capuchin Crypt Sedlec Ossuary Film ( category ) The Seventh Seal Literature Ars moriendi Bardo Thodol Book of Job Book of the Dead Hamlet 's soliloquy The Masque of the Red Death Music ( category ) Danse macabre Der Erlkönig Der Tod und das Mädchen Totentanz Painting ( category ) Et in Arcadia ego Gather Ye Rosebuds While Ye May La Calavera Catrina Pyramid of Skulls Skull of a Skeleton with Burning Cigarette The Ambassadors Poetry ( category ) And death shall have no dominion Der Erlkönig Do not go gentle into that good night ( 1 ) Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Do_not_go_gentle_into_that_good_night&oldid=802370976 '' Categories : Anglo - Welsh literature 1951 poems Poetry by Dylan Thomas Works originally published in Italian magazines Works originally published in literary magazines Poems about death Hidden categories : Pages using citations with accessdate and no URL Pages containing links to subscription - only content All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from September 2017 Articles with unsourced statements from August 2017 Talk About Wikipedia Čeština Deutsch Español Français Հայերեն Bahasa Indonesia Italiano Nederlands Svenska Edit links This page was last edited on 25 September 2017, at 19 : 09. 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Question: who said do not go gentle into that good night
Answer: Welsh poet Dylan Thomas