When going through life encounters with deception are often met as things are usually not what they appear to be. In Theodore Roethke’s poem “My Papa’s Waltz” deception can be found through the telling of the narrator. The poem conveys the voice of the narrator that appears to be a child; it appears this way through the child like tone of the narrator as well as the titling “Papa” of the poem. Throughout the poem the identification of violence can be found. However, the violence is not straightforward but rather it is hidden by the innocence of the child and their lack of understanding. Essentially the poem is describing the events of the child’s drunken father who is waltzing around the kitchen with the child. However, rather than a graceful …show more content…
The diction choice within the poem immediately gives off a negative tone about the poem. Initially the poem appears that it would be a rather nice and peaceful poem because of the title “My Papa’s Waltz” however the poem shifts to a negative tone immediately in the first stanza. The first stanza immediately has the narrator direct his words to a drunken father who is rather rowdy. Following this immediate negative tone comes the diction choice of the words “death”, “romped”, “unfrown”, “battered”, “scraped”, and “beat”. All of these word choices capture an essence of negativity and violence. Due to these words flowing through the poem the idea of violence is placed into the readers mind because of the darkness of the words. The diction then supports the imagery Roethke creates about …show more content…
The events of the fathers drunken waltz which in reality is the father romping around whiles injuring his son, takes place in the kitchen. For these events to occur in the kitchen allows the kitchen to become a symbol. The kitchen is usually warm and an idealistically place where the family gathers together. It is filled with love as it is a place where food is prepared to nourish the rest of the family. To have the drunken father trample around in the kitchen with his young son becomes symbolic of possible chaos within the family. The kitchen is where the scraping of the ear occurs, the pans are falling, and it is the place where the boy is clinging onto his father as though his life depends on it. Essentially the kitchen is the place where the violence occurs, but to have it occur within a place that the family is connected emphasizes the troubles going on within the family; primarily the father and son as they are the two main characters of this
However, neither the setting of the poem nor its events can be linked to the ballrooms where people dance waltz. The opening lines of the poem portray the narrator’s father as a drunken person “The whiskey on your breath/ Could make a small boy dizzy”. The dancer is anything but elegant, he doesn’t waltz gracefully but romps “until the pans/Slid from the kitchen shelf”. The poem is set in a family home, most likely in the kitchen. Thus, the narrator is trying to downplay the social connotati...
Inevitability at one point in most of our lives we have to deal with some type of hardship. A lot of us have experienced first hand or known someone who has had the unfortunate experience of dealing with a close friend or family member who becomes abusive and aggressive because of drug or alcohol related problems. My Papa’s waltz is a poem that tells the story of a young boy dealing with an abusive father and a broken home. Despite the initial light atmosphere of the poem Theodore Roethke uses strong and powerful language to convey an underlined meaning to their dance. My Papa's Waltz is a poem of fear, all the more horrible because the boy is terrified and hurt by his father, even in play, yet he clings and hangs to him showing how strong he is despite his age and through his actions he illustrates his love and patience for his troubled father.
In the poem “My Papa’s Waltz” by Theodore Roethke, the speaker is reflecting on a childhood experience involving his father. Some people assume that this poem is about a happy relationship between a father and son while other people assume that this poem emphasizes hidden messages of parental abuse. In my
Roethke’s and Hayden’s poems use tone in the same way to show that both children ultimately love their fathers regardless of the abuse he commits. The young boy in My Papa’s Waltz is clearly very fond of his father even though his Papa abuses him. It is through the tone the young boy uses that Roethke shows how much he loves his father. This is first enforced when the boy says, “But I hung on like death: Such waltzing was not easy” (Roethke, 3-4). The boy loves his father and he h...
Ultimately, the subject of “ My Papa’s Waltz” has spurred a passionate academic debate from professors, scholars, and students alike, the imagery, syntax, diction of the poem clearly support the interpretation that Theodore Roethke wrote “ My Papa’s Waltz” to illustrate on a past memory of his drunk and abusive father. The controversy of the poem itself is whether it is a good or bad memory. The use of negative imagery, syntax, and diction support this. Overall, with the explanation of the poem and the use of syntax, diction and imagery “ My Papa’s Waltz” was about Theodore Roethke’s drunk and abusive
While one reading of My Papa’s Waltz creates visions of a warm home and a cheerful family, a deeper reading creates a story of fear, abuse, and the effects of alcoholism. Roethke’s poem sends an important message about abuse. Victims of abuse often hide behind a happy, healthy visage, although the signs of abuse are glaring. My Papa’s Waltz shows how easy it is for victims of abuse to hide the truth of the horrors they face. Therefore, the poem sends the message that it is always important to keep a vigilant watch for the signs of abuse, for even the happiest tales can have darker
...oem that "the waltz" was not an isolated event, but was a frequent occurrence. One almost has the feeling that it was a bedtime ritual. This indicates, the seriousness of the fathers drinking. This gives a sense of what the childhood of the boy was like. By indicating that "the waltz" was something that often happened and there's a sense that in the past it may have been a loving ritual between father and son, but as the drinking progressed it became less and less of what the boy remembered. The boy admired his father while at the same time was fearful of his strength.
Although the dance between him and his father was rough and aggressive, the very fact that Roethke chose to write about the waltz indicates that it is a special moment he remembers sharing with his father. The poet has a remarkable ability to describe the moment and not his feelings. This is what makes "My Papa's Waltz" so interesting and leaves so much to interpretation.
Despite all the controversy one must acknowledge the literary devices used to make this poem as famous as it is. One of the literary devices that helped shape “My Papa’s Waltz” was imagery. For example, Roethke uses “beat time on my head”, “palm caked hard”, and “battered on one knuckle” to give the reader a different interpretation of the memory he is telling. This helps form many controversy in determining the meaning behind the poem because one might think of this as the child is getting beat severely. The author uses “hung
Waltzing is graceful and elegant dance that one finds joy in. In Theodore Roethke’s “My Papa’s Waltz” the reader will find an unpleasant experience of a father being abusive towards his son, which is told in a way of a beautiful and romantic dance called the waltz. In retrospect the poem is a possible childhood experience of the narrator (who is the small boy) involving his father. The small boy struggles with a conflict of confusion whether to love or fear his Papa. The theme is the attempt to understand his relationship with his father and the use of the dance as a metaphor for life itself or for an abusive tone. The tone is light but has darker undertones in each line. The poem tells how much the small boy loves his Papa but is also fearful of him because of his father clumpy, abusive character, and the tension between the two which is symbolically the waltz.
My Papa’s Waltz has been compared to a generational litmus test. Depending on what generation the reader was born, could determine how the reader would interpret this poem. Each generation has its own views that have been developed in them for the language used to describe Papa in this poem. The whiskey on his breath and Papa’s hand beating on his head, both sound like a negative connotation. Depending on the experience of the reader, they can either be disturbed by these words or be drawn in closer to the poem. Theodore Roethke loved his father. Not only did he love him, but he idolized him and unfortunately lost him at an early age. This poem is a reflective memorial waltz written in iambic trimeter to honor his father and mother.
Noora Bakhashwain ENWR 1102 03/03/2014 The Hidden “Violent Relationship” The beauty of Theodore Roethke’s poem, “My papa’s waltz” is its ability to manipulate the reader about the reality of a broken relationship. The deception within the story is about a father, his son, and an absent mother. Roethke allows the complexity of the poem to be perceived depending on the reader’s emotions and psyche. The central and most important metaphor in the poem is the description of the beating as a dance; the waltz. The severity of the violence is lessened. The association of dance gives the reader more time to adjust to the harsh truth. Roethke’s father was an immigrant and a drunk, who appears to forcibly have his way with his son while their mother stands aside unable to “unfrown” herself. The poem
The theme of “My Papa’s Waltz” can be seen from the beginning to the end through the elements of poetry and the conflicting tone that the author, Theodore Roethke, employs within the poem. When analyzing each individual element of poetry within My Papas Waltz, the theme begins to form a much deeper meaning that is being conveyed to the readers of the poem. The form of the poem written by Theodore Roethke shows a great deal into the heart of “My Papa’s Waltz.” The poem consists of four quatrains and has a very simple rhyme scheme of ABAB. Roethke also makes use of the iambic trimeter, which is best described as a verse consisting of three beat pattern of rhythm, having an unstressed syllable following a stressed syllable. The rhyme scheme and
Roethke's "My Papa's Waltz" is about a relationship between a father and his son. Beginning with the title, the author's meticulous choice of voca...
Theodore Roethke writes in “My Papa’s Waltz” about what many would read as a morbid recollection of childhood trauma, resting under a veil of innocent language and tone. The work is what it is - poetry. So, while the theme or the tone may seem childlike and light hearted at times, it interprets as dark once one dissects the work.