What are the possible reactions to approaching death in "Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night"?

The answer to this question can be found in the first
stanza, which contains two of the lines that are repeated so often in this excellent
example of a villanelle, which involves repeating certain lines in a set format
throughout the poem. Note what the first stanza says:

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Do not go gentle into that good
night,

Old age should burn and rave at close of
day;

Rage, rage against the dying of the
light.

Thus we can see tha
this first stanza outlines two possible responses to death. Firstly, you can "go gentle
into that good night," accepting the inevitability of death and not fighting against it,
rather choosing to die quietly and to fade away without a struggle. Secondly, the
alternative option is to "Rage, rage against the dying of the light," or to meet death
with a grim struggle, that will not give in without a fight or a conflict. Thus the two
ways of meeting death are polar opposites in terms of the passive and active way in
which they suggest we should meet death, and the emotions of peace and calm acceptance
on the one hand, and rage and anger on the other.