My Papa's Waltz By Theodore Roethke

"My Papa's Waltz" is a poem presented in a form that uses specific images and language to present a happy memory that a man has of his father, even in a situation where his father was drunk. Words such as "romped" (line 5), "waltzing" (line 4), "clinging to your shirt," (line 16)

My Papa’s Waltz takes a person back to the son’s childhood. The first two lines say, “The whiskey on your breath, could make a small boy dizzy”. This passage let the readers know what the memory was about. The memory of a father that drank a lot of whiskey. The child’s first memory, was the smell that was strong enough to make him dizzy. The next line said, “But I hung on like death”. The child did not care what the father was, or had done, he still held on to him tightly. During this time, the mother’s frown is one that will not unfrown or go away. The mother could not have been happy, because of her husband’s drinking problem. The next lines said, “The hand that held my wrist, was battered on one knuckle”. This could be interpreted as a possibility of abuse that the child remembers or, that his father worked hard and had injuries on his hands from work. The boy’s thoughts were of a father drinking too much and becoming abusive with his son. One reader had written that Roethke expresses his resentment for his father, a drunken brute with dirty hands and whiskey breath, who carelessly hurt the child’s ear and manhandled him (? 380). That makes a person think that there was some abuse from the father. The last

“My Papa’s Waltz” by Theodore Roethke, and “Those Winter Sundays” by Robert Hayden are the poems that talk about the relation between son and father. Both speakers in the poem are grown men and reflect memories of the day they spend with their father when they were in childhood. About the poem “My Papa’s Waltz,” Baird states that “Theodore Roethke imaginatively re-creates a childhood encounter with his father, but also begins to attempt to understand the meaning of the relationship between them”( Baird). Another poem “Those Winter Sunday”, Peck states that “the poem provides its power, for the poem’s meaning depends upon the differences between what the boy knew then and what the man knows now” (Peck). Both themes, which is the poem written about fathers, are similar to each other; however, there are some significant difference in the structure of the poem, and the feeling toward fathers from sons.

"We romped until the pans / Slid from the kitchen shelf" (5-6). In numerous poems different readers vista a variety of ways to interpret what poems actually mean. This is very much true in Theodore Roethke's poem "My Papa's Waltz." The quote mentioned has caused many misconceptions about what the poem; "My Papa's Waltz" actually refers to. The two superior interpretations of critics are that Roethke's poem describes abuse or a dance. The abuse seems much more apparent in "My Papa's Waltz" because of the language that Roethke uses. The dance is interpreted because the boy is innocent and knows nothing else therefore the abuse seems normal. The drunkenness of his Papa, the mother's

In recent times as well as before many of our action can lead others to misinterpretation.

When Theodore Roethke was a young boy, he lived on a farm full of greenhouses. His imagination soared as he got to explore and play in each glass house that was filled with different species of flowers and plants. Having so much room to play sounds like a dream for most children, but Roethke had something more to deal with it. From his poem, “My Papa’s Waltz.” and many of his other works, Roethke has mixed emotions flowing through each one. With “My Papa’s Waltz,” there is a sense of alcohol abuse as Roethke’s father is drunkenly “waltzing” with his young self. This leads into wondering if Roethke was affected by the alcoholism that has run through his family. Children are perspective and affected by everything. This means that when a parent drinks alcohol in front of their child and shows behaviors of being drunk, it can immensely disturb a young adolescent (Who are the Real Victims). Roethke is an example of this affect and that’s why it is questioned if he was motivated by his father to use poetry as an outlet.

From the moment his child is born, a man's world changes. He is no longer Jim, Tim or Greg, but father. His child entrusts him to be a guide, a teacher, but foremost, a protector; their shield from the horrors of an uncertain world. It’s a thankless job, but worth the safety of his child; unless of course, he’s one jeopardizing it. In his poem, “My Papa’s Waltz,” Theodore Roethke describes a neglectful and abusive dance between a father and young son.

In “My Papa’s Waltz” by Theodore Roethke, we can interpret many themes, however the one theme that seems apparent is the meaning of hope and admiration. Often as a child, we adore our loved ones, no matter what situation we are in. As humans, we tend to make excuses for the ones we love most. In this poem, a man looks back on his childhood and explains his relationship with his father as a dance, as if he didn’t quite understand their connection. By analyzing this poem’s metaphors, language and imagery, it is evident that this small boy is going through an abusive situation, but we can comprehend that no matter what conflict people go through, they can still have veneration and a sense of hope.

The poem “My Papa’s Waltz” written by Theodore Roethke is based on a tragedy that has happened during his childhood. It talks about him, his mother, and father on how his father would dance in drunkenness through the night. The mother in poem seems to just stand back and watch with a sad face; while Theodore is getting mistreated by his father. When a person reads the poem he or she gets a sense of feeling of that the dad being an alcoholic and trying waltz with his son.

Roughly 33% of children live without their biological father. When one has a father, it increases one’s social behavior and a child's overall performance. A father increases a child’s performance that is why Theodore Roethke wrote a poem called “My Papa’s Waltz” which demonstrated a young boy and his father waltzing around their home. In “My Papa’s Waltz” Theodore Roethke uses imagery, tone and word play to show a positive moment between a son and father waltzing around their home. Theodore’s imagery highlights how the son feels towards his father.

In my “My Papa’s Waltz,” Theodore Roethke conveys the nostalgia for the loving relationship with his father through the use of imagery and diction. While dancing around the room, the speaker describes his father’s hand by saying, “The hand that held my wrist was battered on one knuckle, with a palm caked hard by dirt,” (Roethke 935). By describing the father's hand with words like ‘battered’ and ‘dirt,’ it is implied that the hardworking father just came home from a long day of physical work. Even though the father is most likely tired, he still makes time for his son. As a parent, he instinctively knows that making his son happy is what is most important.

“My Papa’s Waltz” by Theodore Roethke sounds like a light-hearted anecdote about a boy and his father dancing until one examines it a little more carefully. The fun tone falls apart upon closer examination and the complexity becomes clear. The poem is cheerful, yet melancholy as if the speaker knows that the memories would not be considered happy ones for most. The first line of the poem, “The whiskey on your breath” plants the idea that excess in general, especially with alcohol, may be common practice for the boy’s father (1). Roethke’s poem is a fairly accurate summary of life with a functional alcoholic for a parent.

“My Papa’s Waltz,” by Theodore Roethke is a classic poem enjoyed by numerous people. This poem is frequently analyzed it due to it’s meaning that continues to be relevant after seventy-four years. It can be seen as a happy poem about a father and a son, but the diction and metaphors used lead to its serious and sad implication. After continuously reading and analyzing “My Papa’s Waltz,” I came to realize this is a narrative poem written in a lyrical way. Using rhythm and beat, the speaker tells a story about a joyful memory between a father and son that has an unfortunate connotation.

"My papa's waltz" contains a tragic story of a young child experiencing abuse. The first line indicates that he the father is intoxicated with whiskey. His breath is so strong that he could damage a small child. Then in the next line, it says “Such waltzing was not easy”. Waltzing doesn't actually mean dancing, it means a journey of life or a situation that has been seen before.

"My Papa's Waltz" by Theodore Roethke is a demonstration to how a child lives with an alcoholic father. the Father's addiction to alcohol has a strong effect on the child and his life. The Father also involves his child into his drunken ways by being abusive towards him. Waltzing is an expression that the father does because he is drunk. The child still seems to love his father even though he is very abusive. The child is being dragged into the father's lifestyle. The Theme could be that the waltz was a dance of the father but now the child is being forced to dance with him.