Theodore Roethke No Fun Waltz Analysis
No Fun Waltz In his poem, “My Papa’s Waltz”, Theodore Roethke captures a memory of a time when his father was under the influence of alcohol. Roethke describes the endeavor with a negative tone and diction that is exemplified by the description of the protagonist’s father, mother, and self, there is one key factor in this story that keeps it in a playful tone and not a one-hundred percent negative poem, and that is Roethke. His personal description of this experience promotes an overwhelmingly positive contrast to the bleak and negative tone of the rest of the poem. It is not negative, but at the same time it is not positive, it is somewhere in between. The tone of the poem was set into a negative direction due to the situation at hand. Roethke’s father is under the influence of alcohol; that is made abundantly clear in lines 1 and 2 when Roethke writes, “The whiskey on your breath could make a small boy dizzy”(Roethke lines 1 & 2). It is difficult to find a positive tone in a story that involves a character that is, for lack of a better term, drunk. Alcohol is burdened with a negative public view and opinion that is shared among many people. The diction is also negative in this poem. When Roethke wrote such statements as, “But I hung on like death” and, “My mother’s countenance could not unfrown itself”, it seems as though he is describing the negative nature of this event during his life through what he is interpreting from his mother’s and father’s actions and mood(lines 3, 6 and 7). The one part of this poem that is in a completely different tone from the rest of the …show more content…
While the overall tone appears negative, the events within the story that directly affect Roethke have a positive and joyful overtone. Works Cited Roethke, Theodore. “My Papa’s Waltz.” Literature: An Introduction to Reading and Writing. Edgar V. Roberts and Henry E. Jacobs. Upper Saddle River: Pearson, 2007. 856-57.
My Papa's Waltz Syntax
690 Words | 3 PagesIn stanza 3 states “But I hung on like death,” uses simile. It benefits the cause of alcohol that soon becomes tragic for the son. He’s gotten used to it that being abused, death can affect him. Additionally it touches people's ideas to illuminate the true meaning of the poem and to create a negative picture in the reader's mind that is shown by the son of an abusive father. In stanza 13 through 14, “You beat time on my head with a palm caked hard by dirt.”
A Rhetorical Analysis Of Waltz By Roethke
150 Words | 1 PagesFurther, Roethke uses word diction to set the overall tone for this poem. The word “waltz” which is used frequently throughout the text means “to dance in triple time performed by a couple who as a pair turn rhythmically around and around as they progress around the dance floor.” If Roethke was undergoing abuse, the author would choose unfavorable words to describe encounters with his father. Instead, Roethke uses heartening words to get his message across; which is that he will cherish the memorable times he shared with his father. Another word easily misinterpreted is “romped” used in line five, which gives readers a negative connotation; but in truth means “ to play roughly and energetically”
The Mood Of My Papa's Waltz By Theodore Roethke
337 Words | 2 PagesThroughout the poem the author uses imagery and tone to immerse the reader within the poem. The use of deep and disturbing imagery allows the reader to better understand the narrator’s point of view as well as how the issue being displayed relates to themselves. The issue of alcohol
How Did Theodore Roethke's Life Influence His Poetry
1915 Words | 8 PagesThis gave him the opportunity to develop a unique writing style which bloomed into a naturalistic style of poetry. Roethke had a talent for analyzing the world and identifying things that would normally go unnoticed to most people. His main source of inspiration and imagery was drawn from the world of nature. In Roethke’s first volume “Open House” most of his poems were protected in their expression. These collections of poems were Roethke’s first pieces of work, so
My Papa's Waltz By Theodore Roetke
448 Words | 2 PagesTheodore Roetke’s poem “My Papa’s Waltz” portrays a boy in dance with his father. Much of the poem is left up to interpretation, however, evidence suggests that the boy in the poem is having a negative experience due to the poet’s focus on the boy’s clinging and inability to keep up, the mother’s dissatisfaction, and the rough nature of the dance. The boy in the poem struggles to keep up with his father from the beginning of the dance to the conclusion. At the beginning of the poem Roetke writes, “But I hung on like death: / Such waltzing was not easy” (lines 3-4).
My Papa's Waltz Literary Devices
190 Words | 1 PagesI have chosen Theodore Roethke's poetry, "My Papa's Waltz," for this discussion board. - The poem's use of imagery serves as its first literary component, and it uses sensitive language to create a clear visual image for the reader. We can see that the father's hand was described as "battered," while the hanging procedure was described using the word "waltzing." - Rhyming is the second literary technique utilized in the poem. The poem contains a unique form of lyricism.
My Papa's Waltz Literary Devices
521 Words | 3 PagesTheodore Roethke’s poem, “My Papa’s Waltz”, portrays a memory that the speaker has with his father in which they are dancing in the kitchen. The poem is in the perspective of the young boy describing the memory of a “waltz” he had with his father through a childlike point of view. The poem’s title attempts to portray a happy exchange between a father and son however the literary devices used display a counter perspective. Through the use of metaphors, tone, and diction in his poem, Roehke’s describes both a positive and negative memory in which it seems as the son desires a healthier relationship with his father, but encounters the negative impact of physical abuse. In “My Papa’s Waltz” both the positive and negative aspects of the relationship
My Papa's Waltz By Roethke
1033 Words | 5 PagesAs an adult, growing up in that household, it is hard to find peace with their parents' drunk actions. It shows the consequences of alcohalism in a family with problems. In Roethke’s poem “My Papa’s Waltz,” he is talking about his childhood struggles with his alcoholic, abusive father. The dynamic of the father and son was
Connotation In My Papa's Waltz
902 Words | 4 PagesThe relationship between father and son is one that is both sacred, yet complex as each side of the relationship faces hardships. This relationship between a son and his role model, a father and his child, is one, has its ups, but one must also know it has downs. In Theodore Roethke’s “My Papa’s Waltz,” Roethke’s use of ambiguity through diction allows room for the audience to interpret the text in a positive or a negative way, representing the relationship between a father and a son, which on the outside can be interpreted in an either positive or a negative way. Roethke’s use of diction creates an element of confusion for the audience of his poem.
Compare And Contrast Sylvia Plath And My Papa's Waltz
846 Words | 4 PagesComparing and contrasting Sylvia Plath’s “Daddy” and Theodore Roethke’s “My Papa’s Waltz”, one finds the two poems are similar with their themes of abuse, yet contrasting with how the themes are portrayed. Furthermore, the speaker 's feelings toward their fathers’ in each poem contrast. One speaker was hurt by the father and the other speaker was indifferent about how he was treated by his father. The fathers’ feelings toward the children are also different despite how each treated the child. Both poems accurately portray the parent-child relationships within an abusive home, even if they have different
Analysis Of My Papa's Waltz Poem By Theodore Roethke
681 Words | 3 PagesAlthough the author provides many controversial context, the text is made clear once it is examined thoroughly. Roethke uses many words such as “Romped” and “Battered” which leads a sentence to have multiple meanings. To start off, in stanza one the author states that his “Papa” had “Whiskey” On “[his] breath” followed by the author hanging on “Like death.” when first reading the poem, most will probably think these statements mean that the father came home drunk. In addition, in stanza 2 it
My Papa's Waltz Devices Analysis
563 Words | 3 PagesA father and son romping around in the kitchen as the mother is looking. While others may view this poem as a family torn by a father's misfortunes. In line 1, the word “Whiskey” gives some characteristics of the fathers crooked ways. Continuing on, the signs of foul play and roughness with his hands, "battered on one knuckle", and "a palm caked hard by dirt".(11-14) More so, some of “Papa” few escapes most likely consist of a drink when he gets home from a rough day. Concluding, “Papa”makes his own family feel very uncomfortable around him.
My Papa's Waltz Meter Analysis
263 Words | 2 PagesThe use of meter in Theodore Roethke’s “My Papa’s Waltz” symbolizes the relationship between the speaker and their father. This poem is predominately in iambic trimeter. This meter follows the flow of the waltz, a dance that is in 3/4th. The iambic pattern is inconsistent throughout the poem and these slight changes in meter relate to the father’s waltz itself. The waltz “could make a small boy dizzy”, emphasizing the clumsiness of the father’s dance by having an amphibrach foot follow after an iambic foot (Roethke 2).
Imagery In My Papa's Waltz
898 Words | 4 PagesThe first two lines of the poem paint a picture that play to our sense of smell, “The whiskey on your breath. Could make a small boy dizzy.” (1-2) His father is obviously inebriated past
How Is Figurative Language Used In Theodore Roethke's Poetry
762 Words | 4 PagesIn “The Far Field,” Roethke wrote, “I dream of journeys repeatedly: / Of flying like a bat deep into a narrow tunnel” (1-2). The lines are explaining one of the dreams that the narrator of this story has, as he frequently dreams of traveling. Additionally, in another poem, the author writes, “But I hung on like death” (Roethke “My Papa’s Waltz” 3). Here, the narrator is describing how hard he held on to his father as they tried to dance. Also, in “In a Dark Time,” Roethke uses more similes when he writes, ”My soul, like some heat maddened summer fly” (20).
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