My Papa's Waltz

A detailed Summary of My Papa's Waltz

"My Papa's Waltz" by Theodore Roethke is a poem overstuffed with many mixed

interpretations. Some (other students) say the poem is about a man looking back on happy

times. Some (other students) people even say the poem is a story about a little girl dancing

with her father. Although there are many different ways to interpret "My Papa's Waltz",

there are various lines in each stanza to indicate there is an incident of abuse.

"The Whiskey on your breath / could make a small boy dizzy"(1-2), is the opening

line in stanza one. This was the indicator that the speaker in the poem was a boy. In line

four, stanza one; the boy refers to his situation of abuse as a "waltz". Waltzing is a dance

that is thought of to be intimate. The boy in the poem uses this word to describe what is

going on to make it seem right. It is not unheard of for children whom are victims of abuse

to pretend that their mistreatment is normal.

though, that his mother will be unable to help him. Helping him would only cause harm to

unsuitable. This action gestures the saying, "get over here!" Unlike most of the common

being abused. In the first line of stanza three the boy talks about, "The hand that held my

countenance / Could not unfrown itself"(7-8), shows the mother seems to be used to this

type of chaos and too afraid to even say or do anything to stop it. For this child to notice

going or not paying attention to what they are doing can easily do this. Perhaps the father

wrist"(9). This shows an unfriendly gesture. Usually this grabbing of the wrist is something

Approximate Word count = 626
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English

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