There are two types of people in this world: those that see alcohol as a medicine, and those that see it as a drug. Although it may lead to fun times and good memories, it can also cause people to act in ways of aggression, stupidity, and carelessness without even realizing it. The poem, "My Papa's Waltz", by Theodore Roethke tells the story of the relationship between a father and son that is affected by this vice. The title may come across as misleading because although it may seem like a heart-warming poem, the "dance" the son takes with his dad is far from easy. Through the use of imagery, symbolism, and word choice, we can observe how the father's alcohol consumption causes him to act in violent ways that are harmful to his son. The pain the father inflicts makes their relationship difficult and complicated. Whether he realizes it or not, the father is bringing destruction to his family, yet as his son, the speaker can not help but love him still.

Roethke uses imagery to appeal to the senses of the reader in order to show the way the father treated his son. In the very beginning of the poem, we are aware of the intoxicated state the father is in because the very first line says, "The whiskey on your breath could make a small boy feel dizzy." Immediately the reader can imagine just how drunk the father is. As an audience, we can almost smell the alcohol as if it were right in front of us. As a result of his overconsumption of alcohol the father is clumsy and loud. "We romped until the pans slid from the kitchen shelf" (line 5), describes to the reader the ruckus and chaos the "dance" between the father and son is turning into. It is ironic how the waltz is supposed to be such an elegant and graceful dance, yet the relationship between them is anything but. It has now turned to a romp where the steps are more energetic and rough. Another way the author uses imagery is when he physically describes the father's palms. By reading, "palm caked hard by dirt"(line 14), one can observe how the father's aggression and lack of fear to get his hands dirty, correlates to his actions towards his son. Likewise, the description of the father's bruised hand, "battered on one knuckle"(line 10), symbolizes once again, his aggression and violence. It is likely that this injured hand is from a fight or result of anger. All of the imagery the author uses points to a pattern of violence and pain. Being highly intoxicated, the father is not even fully aware of the damage he is causing.

Along with imagery, the author uses the literary technique of symbolism in order to depict the unhealthy relationship. The whole waltz or dance itself mainly symbolizes the relationship this boy had with his father growing up, and how life was like between them. It acts as a controlling metaphor throughout the whole poem. It seems that this dance was not very easy to keep up with. When the poem says, "At every step you missed my right ear scraped a buckle" (line 11,12), I believe that the author is referring to the mistakes the dad is making and the pain he is causing to those around him. Since in a waltz you have a partner, every wrong move the father makes is also affecting the one he is dancing with. These often missed steps or mistakes could be due to the fact that the father is intoxicated. Alcoholism has been known to not only ruin a person's life, but the lives of those who love them as well.

For the fact that in a poem every word matters, the last main element that the author uses is word choice. Often times, the words or phrases he choses have ambiguous meanings. Instead of saying "keep the time", he wrote "You beat time on my head" (line 13). By using this specific choice of words, the aggressive and violent characterization of the father is portrayed. Keeping time is something that is often brought up or referred to when talking about dancing. Roethke chose to describe this line in a haunting tone in order to get across that this was no effortless routine. Another choice of words that stood out is when he depicted the visual of the boy tightly holding onto his father throughout the dance with the words, "hung like death" (line 3). Death is unavoidable and the one thing every human can not escape from. It grasps ahold of each and every person and keeps a tight grip, no matter where life takes them. With every twist and twirl the father made in the dance, the boy could not help but hold on for he loved his father. Although the father did not make it easy, and caused pain with a lot of the mistakes he made, the speaker continued to love him. The word choice the poet uses throughout the poem is so important because even though it is about a "dance" which are often upbeat and fun, the true meaning behind this work of literature is depressing and heartbreaking. It shows a relationship between father and son, hindered by alcohol, and a father's inability to see the pain his mistakes are creating.

Although something I will never be able to relate to personally, the relationship between a father and his son seems to be sometimes complicated. There is a fine line between tough love and showing no love at all. Something about a man and his pride really makes it hard for him to show true emotion and realize when he is making mistakes. Adding alcohol to this equation only makes the problem more difficult. Throughout "My Papa's Waltz", a son is conflicted by the pain his intoxicated father inflicts on him and his willingness to always have love for his father.
