In “My Papa’s Waltz,” Roethke uses an extended metaphor, but uses different language to describe it as the poem is read. “My Papa’s Waltz” has the metaphor of dancing throughout the poem, more correctly, waltzing between a father and son. Everything from the description of the fluidity of the dance to the speakers feeling towards the dance helps create a stronger meaning behind the metaphor. Roethke uses dancing as a metaphor for the relationship between the son and the father, according to the son. Roethke is also able to create a unique atmosphere with his word choice.…
The poem my papas waltz was written by Theodore Roethke as a way to look back on his life. Yet some have read his poem and think his father was abusive. That somewhat makes sense… if you don’t read it right. Most connect alcohol with violence, not knowing that some can drink copious amounts of alcohol and not be drunk. Such is the case for the father in the…
Marriage, the couple promises to love until death do they part, and to never leave each other even if it's just in a memory. That is what happens in this poem, the boy will love his father until the end, even when a great bitterness remains in his memory of all of the suffering. Another way in which the son shows his love for the father is when the boy is longing for him by calling him "Papa" and not the "father". This word is usually used, often, referring to fathers. One has a special relationship, a certain kind of love.…
He Loves Me In the poem "My Papa 's Waltz" written by Theodore Roethke, most readers believe that it is about abuse. Is it possible? Of course it is, it depends on who’s reading the poem and their interpretation of the poem. The use of language, diction, imagery, and symbols, along with the tone helps to influence how readers come to their own conclusion on what the poem is really about.…
The storyline of the poem, “My Papa’s Waltz” by Theodore Roethke, goes way deeper than just dancing, but a negative vibe that shows abuse. For example, in the first stanza, it states, “The whiskey on your breath could make a young boy dizzy”. This explaining the man who is considered the papa, had too many drinks that would be considered drunk. Another line in the same stanza it says, “ But I hung on like death”. What person would be scared to dance with their father?…
The rhyming that happens in the poem deals with exact or slant rhyming. In the text, the rhyming includes text that says: “Was battered on one knuckle (10). As well as, “My right ear scraped a buckle” (12). Knuckle is compared to buckle because it conveys exact rhyming. This examines the way that the child is physically injured during the waltz that he and his father do together.…
“My Papa’s Waltz Tone” “My Papa’s Waltz” is a poem that can be both interpreted as “bitter” and as “sweet”. Depending upon how one views it, there are both parts that represent “bitter” and also parts that represent “sweet”. The parts that are seen as “sweet” visually describe the boys affection to his father and also the bonding between the father and son. The parts that are seen as “bitter” visually describes the fathers appearance and his actions. The quote “Life is about change.…
In Theodore Roethke “My Papa’s Waltz” poem, readers will find one of two stories. The story of a hard-working, affectionate father or an abusive one that drinks too much. The interpretation depends solely on the readers’ perspective. The speaker is reflecting on a childhood memory involving his father. The speaker describes a beautiful but dangerous game that he and his father played as a child.…
When the reader first analyzes the poem, it naturally comes of as harsh or scary. The first thought that comes to mind is that the drunken father is abusing the child. Although after further analysis of the poem it seems as though that is not the case. The poem doesn’t sound as though it was the happiest memory of the child’s life, but it wasn’t a memory he feared either. In the poem “My Papa’s Waltz” written by Theodore Roethke, the speaker’s experience seems to be a positive one based on the rhythm and word choice.…
At first glance this poem seems to be about a young boy who is abused by his alcoholic Father. After breaking this poem into different pieces it is only then that the reader is able to see how Roethke applied the Psychology Criticism to explain that the waltz is not a dance, but it is symbolic of the young boy’s relationship with his Father. The mental process of perception from this small boy dominates as a central theme.…
Roethke’s poetic description of this scene conveys both the father’s love for the son and the son’s fear of this overpowering event, a combination which explains why the poem has haunted so many readers. At first the child finds merely the smell of the alcohol on his father’s breath overwhelming, but he endures the experience and hangs on to his father’s shirt: “Such waltzing was not…
“My Papa’s Waltz” Imagery The poem “My Papa’s Waltz” the author Theodore Roethke talks about his small boy and the relationship he has with his father who is considered drunk or incapable of walking straight, so the boy helps his father. The poem is told from the perspective of the small boy as he addresses his father’s awkward walk since he is considered intoxicated. The relationship they share is expressed by the use of imagery in the poem to show the audience the father’s drunk behaviors and the small boys reactions. The poet uses imagery to explain the amusing moments between the son and his father together.…
“Such waltzing was not easy” (Roethke) suggests that if ‘waltzing’ means beatings, then the son is in pain and can barely withstand them. It could also be that since the father is drunk, trying to stay with him as he waltzed around could be almost…
“The whiskey on his breath could make a small boy dizzy;”(cite) This line in the poem describes to the reader how drunk the father was, but how it did not matter to the young boy that his father smelled of whiskey so strong. The lines that followed tells of how the young lad holds on “like death” to his father not to lose his grip during the dance. The dance was rough for the young boy, with his father missing steps and knocking things over. “Such waltzing was not easy.…
He spent his days with Roethke’s uncle tending to the gardens. The lines from “My Papa's Waltz”, “the hand that held my wrist was battered on one knuckle” displays not only the hard work of Roethke’s father, but the working class status of Roethke (Roethke 10). In the next stanza, an idea is stated. “You beat time on my head with a palm caked hard by dirt. Then waltzed me off to bed still clinging to my shirt”…