speaker says old men at the ends of their lives should resist death
should leave the world the same way they came in; kicking and screaming
at end reader realises, speaker's father is dying
FORM
Villanelle
19 lines
five three-line stanzas
and a sixth stanza with 4 lines
iambic pentameter
ten syllables per line
every other syllable stressed
da-DUM-da-DUM-da-DUM-da-DUM
usually have at least one line repeated
RHYME SCHEME
ABA ABA ABA ABA ABA ABAA
goes through many settings
harsh, lyrical//jarring, lulls you into a sleep/captures your mind
uses harsh constant sounds
gentle instead of gently
connections through commas
more stress
feeling of a strong rhythm
THEMES
The Best of Men
describes behaviour of men as
'wise men
'good men'
'wild men'
'grave men'
parallelism to list men's actions
each stanza begins with a type of man,
describing something good they've done,
ends with speaker reminding reader that
the men won't let themselves die without a
struggle
creates an oxymoron (opposite)
asks his father to 'curse' him and to 'bless him'
separated but joined by a comma
can be seen as opposites but also same thing
oft sounding - one of the very few - sibiliance 's' sounds
Things that fall from the sky
pictures of light and fire
capture readers attention
living with intensity
puzzling imagery
a lightning bolt that isn't forked by what wise men say
contradiction
dying men who have gone blind can still 'see'
metaphorical sense
pardox and surrounding
emphasized by exaggeratd
alliteration