The following version of this poem was used to create this guide: Poetry Foundation. “And Death Shall Have No Dominion.” Poets.org, https://poets.org/poem/and-death-shall-have-no-dominion.

Note that all parenthetical citations within the guide refer to the lines of th epoem from which the quotations are taken.

“And Death Shall Have No Dominion” is one of Dylan Thomas’s earlier poems, written at the start of his career and drawing from the tradition of Romantic-era poets before him. It was written as a challenge between two friends on the subject of immortality. The poem examines the relationship between the mortal body and the immortal spirit, and explores the poet’s perspective on life after death using themes of unity, equality among men, endurance, and spiritual transcendence.