In “My Papa’s Waltz” by Theodore Roethke, is a poem describing the relationship between a playful drunk father and his son/daughter. Although the poem appears to be about an alcoholic father who beats his child, that is not the case. The father may be an alcoholic, but when he returns from work, he does a drunk waltz with his son/daughter. Roethke uses very descriptive imagery and figures of speech, as well as varying syntax and descriptive diction to create what appears to be a dark, negative tone, when it actually is a lighter tone due to the conflicting feelings of the narrator. “My Papas Waltz” uses descriptive imagery and creative diction to depict the scene that is created for the audience in this poem, while providing a deeper message from the author about his relationship with his father. 

In the very beginning of this poem, the diction is key to this poem. Roethke uses phrases and words such as “the whiskey on your breath” (line 1) and “but I hung on like death” (line 3) to create that atmosphere that the audience presumes is an alcoholic, abusive father in the first stanza. In stanza two, the diction “My mother’s countenance could not unfrown itself” (lines 7-8) also helps the audience assume that the mother is upset, creating that dark tone, we the audience, assumes is abuse. Only do we realize in the last stanza that this is not the case. Lines 13-16, the last stanza, show the audience that it just a father, who is indeed intoxicated, but he is just dancing with his child. The father drunkenly waltzes with his child so words/phrases such as “such waltzing was not easy” (line 4) and “then waltzed me off to bed” creates that atmosphere of a lighter tone, it’s still not a perfect happy poem, but it’s not as dark either. This poem serves to show the audience, that not everything is what it appears to be. 

Figurative speech and imagery serves to hide the deeper meanings of this poem to the audience. They use metaphors, alliteration, similes, and extended metaphors to connect different phrases throughout the poem. The waltz is not an easy task for the child as stated “hung on like death” (line 3) which is an understatement. There is an extended metaphor in this poem, which is the waltz itself. It represents the relationship between the father and the child which shows that it was never an easy relationship, but there was always love. The father keeps messing up the dance and makes many mistakes. This is a metaphor for the father’s mistakes in real life and how alcohol made this father-son relationship hard. The most important image that is created by Roethke, is when the kid is being hauled to bed. When stated “Then waltzed me off to bed, still clinging to your shirt.” (line15-16). This image shows that no matter how tough the waltz, the waltz being their relationship, the kid will always love his papa. 

The varying syntax in this poem offers many interpretations and conclusions. It has very short and choppy sentences, due to it being a poem, that create a rhyme scheme.  This rhyme scheme is called iambic trimeter. This helps create to the flow of this poem. This is also ironic because just like three beats, there are three steps in a waltz. The rhyme scheme adds fluidity to certain parts of the poem, but also can be short and choppy which represents the awkward struggle between the father and son’s relationship. Like all poems the syntax represents the structure and fluidity of the poem but also the story being told. It creates helps create that tension when the father walks into the house drunk, but also relieves this very tension by creating rhyme scheme and fluid sentences at the end of the poem.

“My Papa’s Waltz” creates a setting and scene like no other. What appears to be an abusive father, turns out to just be a misunderstood one. The overall, bigger picture of this poem, is that love is a strong feeling, probably the strongest emotion in the world. It can protect people, but also blind them. The child knows that he will always love his Papa. 
