Another line would be “Was battered on one knuckle” this is another method to identify bodily harm. The dance itself symbolize love between the son and father but also power and fear between the two. Roethke allows each reader to have different emotions with the way he applied his symbolism. Even though the author showed happy moments because of the dance but with the father being drunk and very power towards the son showed signs of
Most authors use things like metaphors, similes, and imagery. An author that demonstrated this beautifully is Theodore Roethke with his work “A Papa’s Waltz.” In “My Papa’s Waltz”, Theodore Roethke uses metaphors, symbolism and similes to explain the the father and son’s possibly abusive, yet loving, relationship. The poem starts off introducing the two main characters; the father and son. From the beginning, it can be obvious that their relationship is quite rocky. This gets more evident throughout the poem as well.
Through the use of word choice, Theodore Roethke allows readers to interpret the meaning of the 'waltz' into either domestic abuse, or a childhood memory in “My Papa's Waltz”. Depending on which side of the fence people sit, “My Papa's Waltz” can be very dark, or a very touching piece. Roethke decided to make the father's drinking the first fact to be conveyed. Some see the poem as a sweet memory, to prove this they bring up the time period that the poem was written in, “during 1948 whiskey on a man's breath was not negative but part of culture for the working class”(Goodwin). This finding is worth little to people these days as drinking is more abused now and in many instances this over drinking often leads to domestic abuse.
Another example of this boy’s love can be found in the verses “We romped until the pans/Slid from the kitchen shelf” (5-6). To me the word romped gives a playful meaning. In the verses they were having so much fun that they knocked off pans from the kitchen shelf. This shows to me that the boy loved his father so much that he wanted to be with his father and dance with him. Even if it meant that he may get hurt which was shown in the poem when he talked about being “battered” (10) and “scraped” (12).
Fong further writes that if the poem is quoted at all, it is to mention “the father’s “mixture of tenderness and brutality” and the child’s “admiration and fear” (1990). Theodore however uses imagery very effectively as a poetic device to increase sensitivity in “My Papa’s Waltz,” and precise language to develop this poem. I would tend to believe that if there was any fear it would be the natural fear a child would experience like when spinning around; the fear that they would trip and fall down. Lines five and six, “We romped until the pans/Slid from the kitchen shelf” show an example of how the image is a well-defined, giving description of ideas undergone and realized through the senses: sight, hearing, touch, smell, and taste (as cited in Clugston, 2010). Understanding the poem was not easy at first because of my own negative personal experiences.
We can begin to better understand this relationship by digging deeper into the poem itself and examining each stanza, line and even word. Many moments in this poem lead the reader to believe this is a friendly bedtime waltz. Early in the poem; Roethke writes, “We romped until the pans/ Slid from the kitchen shelf.” (5-6) This shows that the son and father were being charismatic and having a carefree time scurrying about the kitchen. Later in the poem; Roethke writes, “With a palm caked hard by dirt.” (14) showing us its been a productive day of work for the Father and After a long day for both boys this is a time for them to reconnect and enjoy ones company.
Conflicting essay A study of conflicting perspectives can show that all representations are ultimately acts of manipulation. The texts that will be used to support this statement are Ted Hughes’s Birthday Letters and Cat Steven’s song Father and Son. The Ted Hughes poems’ that will be examined are The Minotaur, Sam and Your Paris, these poems will show how to a large extent, that representations are acts of manipulation. Cat Steven’s Father and Son also supports this statement, but to a lesser extent. Both of these texts offer varying conflicting perspectives, which ultimately shape the audiences view of the situation, events and people involved.
A poem with short or few stanzas leaves “a lot of white space” on the page, Roethke wrote, but that forces “those lines to stand up by themselves” (Kizer 6). The first line, “The whiskey on your breath,” would imply the father was an alcoholic. In my point of view, the imagery, language and symbolism used, point to the love between the father and son. In line 3, “but I hung on like death”, I believe the boy is holding on not because of fear but because he didn’t want to fall off while dancing with his father. I believe this boy looked forward to his father coming home from work; it was the highlight of his day.
Poetry is made to express the feelings, thoughts, and emotions of the poet. The reader can interpret the poem however they see fit. The poem is open to many interpretations the readers seem fit. In the poem “My Papa’s Waltz” written by Theodore Roethke, individuals who recall the memory of an abusive relationship with their parent often feel resentment towards them as adults. Careful analysis of each individual stanza backs up the theory of child abuse by a violent and drunken father.
The rhythm of the poem is established with a blend of iambic and anapestic feet and alternates between tetrameter and trimester. Periodically, Poe intentionally uses terms that provoked an effect of alarm in me. This can be seen in the alliterative value of his use of words “chilling and killing”. The startling effect of the stressed “ch” and “k” sounds demanded my attention and provoked a conclusion of injustice done to this loving