Theodore Roethke

Last year, I was assigned a poet for a project in English class. I would have to research this poet, memorize and explicate some of the poems, and learn about the styles and themes. I was assigned Theodore Roethke. The project, at first, seemed pretty boring to me, and I dreaded it. While immersing myself in Roethke’s life, I unexpectedly became interested in what I began to read. His philosophy and ways of seeing life were much different than any other person, or even other famous poets I had read. One quote of Roethke’s inspired me: “Over every mountain there is a path, although it may not be seen from the valley.” I realized how true this was, in any aspect of life. All things that move you forward, come from hard work and dedication. After…

A Walk Through Roethke’s Work “The Waking” by Theodore Roethke is very diverse. Instead of the poem referring to someone waking from sleeping, it refers to someone waking from several realizations about life. The poem is written in first person, therefore, the author is also the speaker. The setting of the poem could take place within a person’s figurative heart or mind. Roethke’s purpose was to show how we become more open-minded through the practice of metaphorically sleeping and waking.…

Hidden Messages “My Papa’s Waltz” by Theodore Roethke is a very mysterious and ambiguous poem. The speaker reminisces on a memory of himself as a young boy with his father. Several readers get multiple impressions of the poem, and find themselves feeling puzzled about what the poem is truly about. The poem is very controversial with the vocabulary being used by the speaker, and there are many interpretations that readers can get from it. The poem demonstrates imagery and metaphors to describe…

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. Where the father would pick him up, strap him in his boots and dance with him all throughout the…

Imagine being a child that loves their father unconditionally. That love is more powerful than thinking of the harm he does is doing to you. “My Papa's Waltz” by Theodore Roethke can be interpreted in multiple ways. The poem could be interpreted as a parent abusing his child due to alcoholism or a child dancing with his father. In the poem, Theodore reminisces about his youth of tangled emotions of fear and unconditional love towards his father besides the imperfections his father has. This poet…

The Poem titled “My Papa’s Waltz” by Theodore Roethke is about the conflicting relationship Roethke had with his father. His dad had an agricultural business which numerous sonnets mirror Roethke's enthusiasm for the greenhouse he worked in when a kid. Roethke's dad was taken away by cancer when Roethke was fifteen, which took a toll on little Roethke. Long after that awful mishap, Roethke battled with sadness and psychological illness. Roethke's written work frequently alluded back to his…

Clark 1 Jessica Clark Professor Lampert English 1302 135 01 October 2015 Poetry Essay In the poem “My Papa’s Waltz” by Theodore Roethke, the narrator is remembering a childhood experience that involved his father. The character describes the relationship with his father by using expression and details. The characters feelings can be viewed in different ways, most people see him as a young boy being abused and neglected, and others see him as having a loving relationship with his father. The…

conducted on their poetry. One exception to this is Theodore Roethke; a poet who lived from 1908 to 1968. Growing up, Roethke had a fascination with nature which would lead to his excessive use of nature as a means of communicating his ideas on human experience and existence in his poetry. When Roethke was 14, his father died of cancer and his uncle committed suicide; this contributed to Roethke’s battles with insanity which would characterize his poetry. He obtained an A.B. and M.A. from the…

Theodore Roethke has a love for Jane but not a romantic love. A love more of admiration of the person she was. He uses aspects of nature to describe her greatest qualities. oh how he talks so highly of her, shy to talk at first Jane was but "once startled into talk, the light syllables leaped her" as if they have been awaiting eagerly for her to talk this whole time. This indicates that when Jane spoke everybody listened with great interest including Theodore. "Her song trembling the twigs and…

"The Waking," a poem written by Theodore Roethke, is an immersive poem that allows readers the experience of Roethke's understanding of his own life, but also the very way of it. There is an extremely strong sense of emotion throughout this poem which also contributes to the continuous repetition of certain lines such as, "I wake to sleep, and take my waking slow." (line 1). This repetition of lines proves one of the main points of the poem in which creativity comes to everyone in their own way.…