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Poet: Theodore Roethke
Poem: My Papa's Waltz
Poem of the Day on:
Nov 1 2004
Comment 56 of 56, added on April 1st, 2007 at 4:21 PM.
With ‘My Papa’s Waltz’ you are personally left to unlock to the abuse between the father and son. What seems as a fun playful poem is quickly dissolved by the underlying child neglect.
With the “The whiskey on your breath”, “hung on like death”, “the pans,
Slid from the kitchen shelf”, “hand that held my wrist, Was battered on one knuckle”, “My right ear scraped a buckle”, “beat time” lines I came to the resolved deduction that this was not all fun.
I had the impression the last line of the poem, "waltzed me off to bed still clinging to your shirt" infers the boy’s dependency on his father. I still had the impression that the relationship was still partially based on love, but more of a reluctant, irresolute love.
This is one of my all time favorite poems. It depicts the abuse ‘behind closed doors’ it gives anyone who’s familiar with a love/hate relationship enthralled with the maltreatment as a child. It perfectly illustrates the story of a father and son, a son who powerlessly put up with his father.
Alysha Smith from Canada
Comment 55 of 56, added on March 22nd, 2007 at 5:04 AM.
In my first 'speed' read of the poem "My Papa's Waltz' I negatively percieved and interpreted this piece of poetry to have been written on the basis of child abuse. I thought to myself, now, this just can't be right so, I reread the poem the way it must be read, at a 'slower pace in feeling the literary works' -- then to interpret a positive 'blissful' time shared between father and son. The father and son had spent much time 'daily' together in the greenhouse in which reveals to me that the two had a close and bonded relationship. Also I have thoroughly researched Theodore Roethke's Life, Career, Poetry and Timeline in which there are no words that reveal any form of domestic violence and/or child abuse in Roethke's life. Plus, Theodore was extremely close to his father and terribly jarred by his father's death. In addition, I percieve a tired papa coming into the home, after a hard days work out in his greenhouse, 'with palm caked hard by dirt' hands; after dark. I think 'whiskey on his breath could make a small boy dizzy' is merely the act of papa taking a shot of whiskey to relax after work in which does not mean the father is a drunken sot. The odor of whiskey would be strong to a non drinker and a small child. Also, In male rough-housed play the father and son danced 'Papa's Waltz' around the room in papa giving his son maculine 'quality time' prior to getting him off to bed. The Mother frowned with disapproval by the rough play and noise, however, she said nothing to disturb the father and son's joyful dance; for boys will be boys. Finally, the 'beat time on my head' is basically a pat of a strong man's hand on a small boy's head -- telling his son playtime is over and it's time for bed. Futhermore, the child would not be 'clinging' to his papa's shirt if he were being abused. He would urgently be trying to 'get away' from his papa.
Poet Ambassador, Trish from United States
Comment 54 of 56, added on January 11th, 2007 at 5:27 PM.
I do not believe that the boy's father is abusive. Although he is portrayed as a drunkard, I believe that he is very loving. I also believe that the little boy enjoyed the waltx because although he is enduring bodily harm he does not say anything. The mesage in this poem is that the simple things in life can bring joy to someone. Also, it is my opinion that lines 11-12 do not speak of abuse but it is put in literary terms that the father'd drinking and his actions affected the little boy negatively.
Chadia Mathurin
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With ‘My Papa’s Waltz’ you are personally left to unlock to the abuse between the father and son. What seems as a fun playful poem is quickly dissolved by the underlying child neglect.
With the “The whiskey on your breath”, “hung on like death”, “the pans,
Slid from the kitchen shelf”, “hand that held my wrist, Was battered on one knuckle”, “My right ear scraped a buckle”, “beat time” lines I came to the resolved deduction that this was not all fun.
I had the impression the last line of the poem, "waltzed me off to bed still clinging to your shirt" infers the boy’s dependency on his father. I still had the impression that the relationship was still partially based on love, but more of a reluctant, irresolute love.
This is one of my all time favorite poems. It depicts the abuse ‘behind closed doors’ it gives anyone who’s familiar with a love/hate relationship enthralled with the maltreatment as a child. It perfectly illustrates the story of a father and son, a son who powerlessly put up with his father.
Alysha Smith from Canada