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…
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?…
“My Papa’s Waltz” by Theodore Roethke describes a young boy’s relationship with his father. The use of imagery throughout shifts the way in which the reader interprets the poem. The relationship between the father and the son appears to be strained, only holding on by a thread. The descriptions of the father help the reader understand the reason behind the strained relationship. His father is a hardworking blue-collar worker who comes home drunk but still has to put on a good face for his son.…
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.…
My papa’s Waltz Reading the poem I felt sad for the little boy. Immediately I thought that the boy's father was an alcoholic , who physically beat his son, but as I kept reading and rereading I began to paint a different picture. The boy loved his father and the dancing they did together “I hung on like death” and the boy and his father very much enjoyed doing this together “romped”. The word beat in the poem is not to beat as in hurt, but what I believe is meant to count steps in the waltz.…
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…
Theodore Roethke’s poem “My Papa’s Waltz” is an interesting poem because of the different ways it can be interpreted. While there are many ways readers interpret the poem, the two extremes usually lie between an alcoholic father abusing his son and a loving father playfully rough housing with his son. However, when I read and interpreted the poem for myself, my optimistic tendencies at first lead me to read the poem with the brighter meaning in mind, but as I kept reading my perception of the poem soon turned dark. Even though I can see how “My Papa’s Waltz” can be interpreted as either of the two extremes, my view tends to fall more towards the idea that the father is abusing his son.…
“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…
When it comes to the topic of ¨My Papa's Waltz¨ written by Theodore Roethke, most people will readily agree that this poem is about a loving memory. Where this agreement usually ends, however, is on the question of when is it fine to abuse a child because a father got drunk? Whereas some are convinced that the poem is about a fond memory, others maintain that it's about abuse. While the subject of ¨My Papa's Waltz¨ has spurred passionate academic debate from professors, scholars, and students alike, the imagery, syntax and diction of the poem clearly support the interpretation that Theodore Roethke wrote ¨My Papa's Waltz¨ to show his abusive relationship between him and his father.…
“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.…
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 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”…
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.…
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.…