My Papa’s Waltz
The whiskey on your breath
Could make a small boy dizzy;
But I hung on like death:
Such waltzing was not easy.
We romped until the pans
Slid from the kitchen shelf;
My mother’s countenance
Could not unfrown itself.
The hand that held my wrist
Was battered on one knuckle;
At every step you missed
My right ear scraped a buckle.
You beat time on my head
With a palm caked hard by dirt,
Then waltzed me off to bed
Still clinging to your shirt.
Theodore Roethke, “My Papa’s Waltz” from Collected Poems of Theodore Roethke. Copyright 1942 by Hearst Magazines, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Doubleday, a division of Random House, Inc.
Source: The Collected Poems of Theodore Roethke (1961)
Theodore Roethke, “My Papa’s Waltz” from Collected Poems of Theodore Roethke. Copyright 1942 by Hearst Magazines, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Doubleday, a division of Random House, Inc.
Source: The Collected Poems of Theodore Roethke (1961)
Read, and analyze this poem. Remember to take it stanza by stanza, line by line and focus on the diction, imagery, figurative language, the tone and theme(s). What are your impressions of this poem? How do you read it? Please refrain from looking at outside sources; we will examine some of them later. Remember that these analyses are a form of formal writing and should be treated as such. Keep up the good work!
Giving me the image of a small, rustic farmhouse kitchen, “My Papa’s Waltz” illustrates a boy’s attachment to his father. In this poem, he is able to dance with his dad, but it seems that is one of the only pleasant things they are able to do together. The father works hard and has many a scar to show for it: “The hand that held my wrist/ Was battered on one knuckle” (9-10). The boy’s father has other problems to deal with as well, but the boy does not care, because he loves his father unconditionally, as shown in the lines, “The whiskey on your breath/ Could make a small boy dizzy;/But I hung on like death:/ Such waltzing was not easy.” (1-4). The tone is bittersweet, as you can see the boy and his father have a loving relationship, yet the father is not very present in his son’s life, and has many problems hiding under the surface.
ReplyDeleteThe poem "My Papa's Waltz" is a poem about how much this little boy adores his father. In the first stanza, "The whiskey on your breath could make a small boy dizzy..." (1-2) suggests that the young boy's father was most likely an alcoholic but the boy loved his father dearly, so he was able to look past his problems. As it says, the boy never stopped believing in his father, even when he had trouble 'holding on'. The poem outlines the playful and loving relationship between the family. It reminds me of the poem "Those Winter Sundays" because the father in both instances works tirelessly to provide for his family. "The hand that held my wrist was battered on one knuckle.." (9-10) and "With a palm caked hard by dirt.." (14) are two quotes that support my claim, each an example of someone who has worked hard. Though the father struggles through his work, as soon as he returns home, he treats his son with love, patience, and kindness. These attributes create a nurturing environment for the young boy, which is why he reflects so fondly on his father and childhood.
ReplyDelete“My Papa’s Waltz” by Theodore Roethke illustrates a young boy’s oblivious loyalty to his alcoholic father. It is obvious that the father is an alcoholic due to the olfactory imagery in lines 1-2, “The whiskey on your breath/ Could make a small boy dizzy.”(1-2) The loyalty to his father is demonstrated immediately after in line 3, “But I hung on like death.”(3) The author uses death as a comparison in order to show the endless bond between the boy and his father because death never ceases to remind people of the absence of someone they miss. Visual imagery is presented when the author describes the playfulness between the drunken father and the naive child, followed by the disapproval of the mother’s visage. “We romped until the pans/ Slid from the kitchen shelf;/ My mother’s countenance/ Could not unfrown itself” (5-8) The visual imagery in lines 9-10 suggests the father’s struggles, the the boys devotion despite, “The hand that held my wrist/ Was battered on one knuckle.” (9-10) In conclusion, Theodore Roethke uses several different types of imagery to give the reader a clear insight into the relationship of a light hearted young boy and an alcoholic father.
ReplyDeleteMy Papa’s Waltz, by Theodore Roethke, tells the story of a father, a son, and a waltz. In the first stanza, the reader learns that the father is an alcoholic. The speaker of the poem, the boy’s son, states, “The whiskey on your breath/ Could make a small boy dizzy/ But I hung on like death/ Such waltzing was not easy.” (Lines 1-4) These lines in the opening of the poem cast a tense and dark tone. In addition, they reveal the boy’s response to his father’s drunken state. He feels uncomfortable and challenged in the situation, yet he persists in “waltzing” with his father. The waltz that Roethke describes can be interpreted in various ways. The reader can view it as a father and son dancing happily in their kitchen. The reader can also see it as a metaphor for their relationship. The father may not have always been present in the boy’s life. “At every step you missed/ My right ear scraped a buckle.” (Lines 11-12) Every moment that the father was absent lead to further discomfort in the boy’s life. In the last stanza, Roethke goes into further detail about the waltz. “You beat time on my head/ With a palm caked hard by dirt/ Then waltzed me off to bed/ Still clinging to your shirt.” (Lines 13-16) This description of the waltz seems less playful than it appeared initially. This makes the reader detect the theme of continuing to love one another despite the imperfections of a relationship. Roethke may have used this poem as a metaphor for his relationship with his own father. His vivid imagery and unique storyline allows the reader to view the complicated bond between a boy and a man.
ReplyDeleteIn the lyric poem, “My Papa’s Waltz,” Roethke is obviously speaking of a past memory. Probably the most notable quality of this poem is its relatability, conjuring images of family humor despite its dysfunctionality. Speaking of a memory, Roethke is directly addressing his father, as the lines alternate between the first and second person. The poem begins with olfactory imagery: “The whiskey on your breath/could make a small boy dizzy.” (Roethke, lines 1-2) This immediately provides insight into the dysfunctional life of the father, as this line echoes alcoholism. However despite his father’s hardships, Roethke continues to hang onto his father in undying affection: “But I hung on like death:/Such waltzing was not easy.” (Roethke, lines 3-4) The humor between the boy and the father is again contrasted to the mother, disapproving of them upsetting the pans from the kitchen shelf. This, in its relatability, is humor in itself. His father’s hands, scarred and caked with dirt, are a direct indication of the hardship’s Roethke’s father faced in life, echoing the poem “Those Sunday Mornings.” Roethke may have chosen a waltz specifically for this poem as a subconscious source of rhythm to sway beneath the words of the poem. It is also important to note that a waltz is not complicated; it’s only requirement that it be conducted in three. This is also similar to the love that the father and son share, as throughout the humor and hardship, the love is enduring. This lends itself to the theme that love is consistent through the highs and lows of life.
ReplyDelete“My Papa’s Waltz” by Theodore Roethke shows a young boys dedication to his father, and how he looks up to him, despite his problems with alcohol. In the first stanza, the reader learns about the father’s problem with alcohol, and although the boy is aware of how much damage is being done, he chooses to stand by his fathers side through it all. This poem shows how much the boy pays attention to detail and how he knew what was going on with his father and what would happen to the family. In the second stanza, the reader becomes aware of the impact the father is putting on the family. “My mothers countenance could not unfrown itself” (lines 6-7), this quote accurately shows how the father was leaving a sour tone throughout the house based on his actions. Throughout this lyrical poem, it is possible to sense the strong bond between the son and the father. Although the father is relatively distant in the boys life, they maintain a good relationship, disregarding any problems the father might have.
ReplyDelete“My Papa’s Waltz”, by Theodore Roethke illustrates a young boy’s love and loyalty for his alcoholic father. “The whisky on your breath/ could make a small boy dizzy/but I hung on like death/such waltzing was not easy.” (Roethke lines 1-4) This quote shows that even that even though his father was an alcoholic and had other problems he still hung on too him like death. The boy cherished his moments with his father and always wanted to be by his side. Through the ups and down, he never abandoned the bond with his father. “The hand that held my wrist/ was battered on one knuckle” (Roethke lines 9-10) This quote implies that the father worked manual labor. “At every step you missed/ my right ear scraped a buckle,” (Roethke lines 11-12) These two lines show that the boy was only half the size as his father. At first I thought this poem was about drunken abuse after lines 15-16 reading “You beat time on my head/ with a pal caked hard by dirt.” However, after reading through it multiple times, I came to the conclusion that it was the opposite of abuse. Only love.
ReplyDelete"My Papa's Waltz" by Theodora Roethke is a nostalgic poem about a boy and his father. After first reading it, the audience is left with a dark and solemn impression. Roethke uses words like “death,” “battered,” and “beat,” that makes it seem like the father is an alcoholic who abuses his child. However, the poem is much more light and joyful when looked at closely. Roethke is describing the admiration that a boy has for his father and the relationship between them. In the first of the four stanzas, readers are informed about their relationship, which is represented through the waltz. The boy, who loves his father very much, has always tried to embrace their relationship and has never given up on it. This is portrayed by the line “But I hung on like death. ” (1.3) The stanza also shows that this may not have always been the easiest thing to do, “Such waltzing was not easy,” (1.4) which may be due in part to his father’s drinking, which was introduced in the first line. The second stanza has visual imagery of the falling pans and his mother’s disapproved look. These portray a more lighthearted scenario. The third stanza reiterates the idea of the boy always accepting the father. The steps that his father missed represent the mistakes he made in real like. “My right ear scraped a buckle,” (3.4) shows that every time the father messed up, it was the boy who suffered. In the fourth and last stanza, Roethke writes that the boy was “still clinging to your shirt,” (4.4) meaning that he still loved and appreciated his father in spite of these mistakes.
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