The poem, “My Papa’s Waltz” is based on a moment in life for a family. The father has had way too much to drink and seems to be taking it out on his son. “The whiskey on your breath / could make a small boy dizzy” (1-2). The father had drunk so much that the stench of whiskey made the boy feel the effects of the drink. “A primarily negative text portraying a “drunken father, angry mother, and desperate child” who have a “desperate hope” for some fun in the face of “a real fear of violence and disruption” (McKenna 34).
Although the little boy is getting dizzy and his ear is getting scraped by the buckle, he still “hung on like death”. This action shows that even throughout the pain he still looks up to and loves his father. The mom even seems …show more content…
“You beat time on my head”, shows that the father wants his son to be disciplined and tough like him. Yet, the son has found himself in the feminine role. He follows his father’s lead in the dance while his mother stands back and watches. The poem shows us as readers, how a son understands a man’s gender and masculinity from his father.
Children usually find their parents invincible. Parents tell a child when to eat, when they can play, and when to as in “My Papa’s Waltz” when to go to sleep. Everything a child does is set by his or her parents. We see a very hands on demonstration of a father power in this poem. He leads his son in a “dance” while the mother stands on the sideline powerless. She can’t even stop them from tearing up the kitchen, let alone stop the father from hurting her son.
How Roethke uses word placement shows that he is not entirely blaming his father and all together angry at him. He uses “romped” and “waltz” which aren’t harsh words but more kind words. He uses a poetry technique called syntax. Syntax is “the way words are put together to form phrases, clause, and sentences” (Norton A11). Roethke uses it in stanza 3 line 12, “My right ear scraped a buckle”. This changes the effect of the sentence. He doesn’t put blame nor specifies any unpleasant treatment. “He implies intensity, almost intention-as though the romping would not be complete until
Although the little boy is getting dizzy and his ear is getting scraped by the buckle, he still “hung on like death”. This action shows that even throughout the pain he still looks up to and loves his father. The mom even seems …show more content…
“You beat time on my head”, shows that the father wants his son to be disciplined and tough like him. Yet, the son has found himself in the feminine role. He follows his father’s lead in the dance while his mother stands back and watches. The poem shows us as readers, how a son understands a man’s gender and masculinity from his father.
Children usually find their parents invincible. Parents tell a child when to eat, when they can play, and when to as in “My Papa’s Waltz” when to go to sleep. Everything a child does is set by his or her parents. We see a very hands on demonstration of a father power in this poem. He leads his son in a “dance” while the mother stands on the sideline powerless. She can’t even stop them from tearing up the kitchen, let alone stop the father from hurting her son.
How Roethke uses word placement shows that he is not entirely blaming his father and all together angry at him. He uses “romped” and “waltz” which aren’t harsh words but more kind words. He uses a poetry technique called syntax. Syntax is “the way words are put together to form phrases, clause, and sentences” (Norton A11). Roethke uses it in stanza 3 line 12, “My right ear scraped a buckle”. This changes the effect of the sentence. He doesn’t put blame nor specifies any unpleasant treatment. “He implies intensity, almost intention-as though the romping would not be complete until