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08-12-2024 02:34 PM - edited 08-13-2024 01:53 PM
So go the immortal words of one of the genius spirits of the 20th century, turbulent Welsh poet, Dylan Marlais Thomas.
Paul Ferris's biography of him is really good!
Considered one of the finest poets of the 20th century, his life was relatively brief, but hugely influential. Author also of "Under Milk Wood", "In My Craft or Sullen Art", "Fern Hill", etc. etc.
Little Dylan Thomas was cherubic, and already seeing things with those eyes:
Dylan, with his sister, left, and mother, right. Family friend in back. His curly hair, oh my!
Raised in a Swansea suburb, according to his biographer, in a 'slightly threadbare respectability', his father a local schoolmaster. (The "Do Not Go Gentle..." poem was occasioned by Dylan's losing of that father to human frailty and ultimately, death.)
His fame and his legend were immense, as is this BBC microphone! ( Must have been at one of his poetry readings for the network.)
He fulfilled the beatnik-y archetype of the reckless, brilliant, charming poet, increasingly out of control with his behavior and his drinking.... but he bewitched almost everyone with his searing talent....
--Dylan Thomas, from a "Poem for October", on the occasion of his 30th birthday.
Interestingly, for all his outlaw reputation, Ferris quotes him as crediting the Bible as a huge influence- it "first made me love language, and want to work *in* it, and *for* it.... The great rhythms had rolled over me from the Welsh pulpits..."
I remember as a teenager, first encountering his legend, and going whoa! Of course, it helped that he was, long dead by then, a cult figure, a "rebel" and just fascinating. He was Welsh ( my grandfather was from near Cardiff), he had that funny "y" in the middle of his name. I also have a name with a crazy y, that is a Welsh word. His means "son of the sea".
Born in 1914, he was essentially the first real "Dylan", for all intents and purposes. At the height of his first fame, from the Forties through the early Fifties, his unusual name captivated many-- and then, Bob Dylan, aka Bobby Zimmerman, and one of the legions of Dylan Thomas admirers, coopted it for his last name. And wham! Baby boomers and later generations started giving it to their children, making it trendy for both sexes....
(He was chaotically married to Caitlin Macnamara, an Anglo-Irish adventuress and author. Again, with the Celtic name, "Caitlin", that was almost unheard of then worldwide, but later became wildly popular... )
And their children were Llewelyn Edouard, Colm Garan, and Aeronwy Bryn!
From "And Death Shall Have No Dominion"
.....No more may gulls cry at their ears
Or waves break loud on the seashores;
Where blew a flower may a flower no more
Lift its head to the blows of the rain;
Though they be mad and dead as nails,
Heads of the characters hammer through daisies;
Break in the sun till the sun breaks down,
And death shall have no dominion.
Dylan Thomas
We had an old recording of Dylan Thomas actually reading his own "A Child's Christmas in Wales"-- it was enchanting.
Here's the famous Boat House in Laugharne, Wales where Dylan Thomas lived and watched the tides go in and out...
And a few yards away, his tiny writing shed still stands...
Such a simple marker, in Laugharne, for a great writer--
Recommend the book for anyone interested in poets, genius gone awry, Wales, the midcentury ( mid 20th century) literary scene, etc.
08-12-2024 04:50 PM
I don't know who he is other than what you mentioned here but the phrase "Milk Wood" instantly struck me as notes of a potentially wonderful fragrance.
08-12-2024 05:03 PM
And, perhaps cruelly, The White Horse Tavern, on Hudson Street in NYC, where the poet literally drank himself to death, is still standing.
08-12-2024 05:05 PM
@Oznell The 70's tv show The Beauty and the Beast used quite a bit of Dylan Thomas's work. Death shall have no dominion was important to a two episode arc.
08-12-2024 05:51 PM
His work was featured in the movie, 'Dangerous Minds'.
Love that movie!
That teacher (Michelle Pfeiffer) really had some spunk and intuition re: how to reach these kids.
She spent a lot of time with them, discussing/analyzing Dylan Thomas' writing to Bob Dylan's writings.
Check it out if you can!
08-12-2024 08:45 PM - edited 08-12-2024 08:47 PM
I really enjoyed reading about him @Oznell.
Especially because for some reason I have always loved these lines of his-"Do not go gentle into that good night. Rage rage against the dying of the light." And sometimes just hearing them in my head.
I don't agree with them because sometimes I think when all is said and done, and acceptance is had, it is peaceful to go gentle into that good night.
Maybe it is how they sound that I love most.
08-13-2024 09:30 AM
That is fascinating, @KLm , and @KingstonMom , did not know that references like that had worked their way into various kinds of pop culture that you cite!
Agreed, @on the bay , the words have a sort of hypnotic cadence that stays in the mind. I'm also not sure if 'raging against the dying of the light' is quite what I'd subscribe to.... especially with the certainty of so much beyond.
Yet, if the poem is indeed partly about his father succumbing to physical frailty, then Thomas's reluctance to see his once-vibrant father subside, makes a kind of sense. Even if selfishly.
There's something so starkly courageous and gallant about the sheer fighting spirit of humanity, even against the inevitable...
08-13-2024 09:37 AM
Yes, I think so too that is has a fighting kind of spirit in writing it about his father. And I agree that it really does apply when thinking about someone we love dying. Then, I too want to say rage rage against the dying of the light! I want them to stay.
08-13-2024 10:30 AM
I like Dylan Thomas' poetry and will keep this book in mind to read.
Thomas died at age 39 from alcohol and drug use. I wonder if he "raged against the dying light" when his end was near. Did he go gentle or follow his own words?
08-13-2024 10:47 AM
Yes, it was a bad ending, @teganslaw . The drinking had continued apace, and on his well-documented trips to the U.S., he seemed to have no holds' barred. He collapsed after a lengthy drinking episode in a bar, and lapsed into a coma. There seems to be quite a bit to suggest that once he was hospitalized, he did not receive optimum treatment. But of course he had already been on a downward spiral, sadly.
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