The archetypal father is typically recognized as a working-class man who earns a sufficient income to support his family. "Those Winter Sundays" by Robert Hayden presents a father upholding the role, while "forgiving my father" by Lucille Clifton does not. Both poems express the perspective of adults recollecting their youth; a time period when their fathers were alive. In one poem the father seems to be taken for granted, whereas the other is described as a dead, pathetic "pauper" (Clifton 20). So while Hayden's and Clifton's poems are about fathers, the attitudes of the speakers are considerably different; the speaker in "Those Winter Sundays" speaks positively about the father remorsefully, while the speaker in "forgiving my father" speaks in a purely negative manner. The fulfillment of fatherly duties and the gratitude of the speakers are the main elements that contrast in both poems.

Both poems depend on the reader recognizing a convention set of fatherly duties -- particularly, supporting the wellbeing of his family. Sometimes difficulty occurs due to certain circumstances, such as the life an individual was born into. The father in Clifton's poem was born in a poor economic position: "but you were the only son of a needy father, the father of a needy son" (12-13). Perhaps if the father was born into a wealthier household, supporting his family's welfare would not have been problematic. The speaker in "Those Winter Sundays" does not state whether the father was born into a rich or poor family; the audience may assume either possibility. The difference between fathers is their choices to do with the life they had. The father in Hayden's poem is portrayed as a tough, hard-working man: "then with cracked hands that ached from labor in the weekday weather made banked fire blaze" (4-5). His cracked hands embody the harshness of labor, and he managed to continue building fires even when they ached. The fire represents the wellbeing of his family; his determination kept the fire alive, in spite of the adversity --  the aching. In contrast, the speaker in Clifton's poem rants on what her father didn't do: "you gave her all you had which was nothing...you are the pocket that was going to open and come up empty any friday" (14-18). Friday typically marks a payday for most working-class people, but the speaker expresses that day as a time for bill payment. The speaker is upset because ironically even on a payday, the father could not pay the bills. The attitudes of the speakers toward their fathers contrast due to whether or not the fatherly duties were satisfied.

The lack of gratitude is an aspect common in both poems; the speaker in "Those Winter Sundays" regrets not showing any gratitude to his father while the speaker in "forgiving my father" thought her father was undeserving of gratitude. The father of "Those Winter Sundays" contributed to a life that would be agonizing without him. He was accountable for "clearing the chronic angers of that [his] house (Hayden 9) and even "polished my [his] good shoes as well (Hayden 12). The "chronic angers" symbolize the freezing living conditions they lived in, but the father "had driven out the cold" (Hayden 11) and even notified the speaker when the rooms were warm. Even on Sundays he kept the house warm, "Sundays too my father got up early" (Hayden 1). Sundays are usually days off for most, but the father still wakes up early in the "blueblack" cold to warm the house. "Polished my good shoes" (Hayden 12), could be interpreted as his father gave him what he needed, and even more than what he asked for. Sadly, the speaker says "no one ever thanked him" (Hayden 5). Even worse, the speaker spoke "indifferently to him" (Hayden 10). After everything his father has done for him, he never showed the gratitude his father deserved. The audience can feel the remorse of the speaker, unable to show gratitude to his father now that he has passed away, and not doing so when he was younger. He will forever have a sense of guilt in his heart living up to the cliche "you never know what you have until you lose it."

In contrast, the speaker in "forgiving my father" drives the opposite end of the appreciation spectrum and actually insults her father, calling him: "old lecher, old liar" (9-10) and "old pauper, old prisoner" (20) expressing her disgust of the father. Judging by the harshness of her word choice, the audience may assume the child had a rough childhood due to the father. She calls him a "lecher" and says that her parents were "each other's bad bargain, not mine[hers]"(Clifton 19), meaning their decision to have sexual relations seemed great at the time; however the punishment of being poor due to childcare was not part of the plan. The speaker claims the father's debt could not be cannot be blamed on her; it was their fault. Adding to the "lecher" interpretation, the father could have had multiple sexual partners. The speaker says that he was a "father of a needy son" (Clifton 13) meaning there could be a brother, or even multiple children. It could be the reason why he is out of money, because he has to support so many kids. The speaker emphasizes money as the main cause of her unfortunate life: "today is payday, payday old man...I wish you were rich so I could take it all and give the lady what she was due" (Clifton 5-11). The father never had the money to pay the bills or could have been called a "liar" because he said didn't have any money when actually he did. The speaker wished her father was wealthier because then there would have not been any hardship. She concludes her poem saying, "old dead man what am i doing here collecting? you lie side by side in debtor's boxes and no accounting will open them up"(Clifton 20-23). Typically, when a person passes away, he leaves a will for the family members. Usually a will includes a sum of money. Disappointingly, the father did not have a penny to his name and was in debt. In the speaker's perspective, there was nothing about her father that deserved gratitude.

"Those Winter Sundays" by Robert Hayden and "forgiving my father" by Lucille Clifton are both poems reminiscing fathers before their death. One is narrating a father warming the house during a harsh winter; the other seems as if it is a hate letter, listing all his negative qualities. The attitudes of the speakers contrast in whether or not the fathers deserved gratitude for their actions. Hayden's poem portrays a diligent, caring father, while Clifton's portrays the father as a pathetic excuse of a man. There is one common duty for fathers -- to keep the wellness of their family satisfactory. Gratitude should be the obligation for their children, but if a father does not fulfill the needs of the family, an ungrateful attitude is likely the result. There was a key problem in each poem that distressed the speakers. Unfortunately, money was the problem that tore the speaker in "forgiving my father," but money isn't always the cause according to "Those Winter Sundays," whose speaker is torn by his own ingratitude. These two issues are relevant in society today. Money is the source for putting food on the table, bill payments, and entertainment, without money it is hard to find happiness or even a suitable way of living. Ingratitude in the youth nowadays is common. Teenagers act selfishly; they have a tendency to avoid their parents, yet come running to them when they need something. They are constantly engrossed in technology such as cellphones, videogames and social media; ignoring parents has never been easier. Teens constantly ask to leave the house to spend time with friends rather than family. They fail to realize once their parents are gone there will be no one else to replace them. There will never be anyone who deserves a "thank you" the most.
