




The poem My Papa’s Waltz seems to operate as a vessel for a young boy to be able to convey the abuse he receives to the outside world.  The first two lines of My Papa’s Waltz by Theodore Roethke sets a tone of uncertainty immediately, with what appears to be a way of introducing the speakers father who we can presume is an alcoholic, 

“The whiskey on your breath 

Could make a small boy dizzy” (Roethke 1-2). 

 Alcoholism has a history of causing violence, and abuse; a theme of violence is set for the reader at the very beginning.  Not only does Roethke acknowledge his father has a habit of drinking, but also metaphorically describing the pure volume of alcohol his father consumes, hinting at his father’s alcoholism. 

Lines three and four further build the violent undertone, contributing more to the theme of violence throughout My Papa’s Waltz by revealing the nature of the events that transpired when the speakers father was inebriated.

“But I hung on like death:

Such waltzing was not easy” (3-4)

Roethke brings to the reader’s attention the unescapable theme of death when referring to the waltz.  Roethke is most likely saying no matter what he has to endure the waltz just as one day all people endure death.  Many people who have an alcoholic in their family feel as if they are unable to escape the abuse of the alcoholic close to them. Roethke tries to be ambiguous never saying that there was violence, but rather spins it to sound like a dance.

Roethke further demonstrates his father’s violent nature in what appears to be denial in lines five through eight.

“We romped until the pans

Slid from the kitchen shelf;

My mother’s countenance

Could not unfrown herself.” (5-8) 

Roethke approaches his father’s “Waltz” as romping around, which is considered normally a happy, joyful action; but his diction regarding to the pans sliding from the shelfs suggest a rather violent “waltz”.  Roethke further alludes to his father’s violent nature by addressing his mother’s clear displeasure with the events taking place based on her inability to “unfrown herself”.  In an abusive relationship everyone is hurt, the speakers mother is clearly feeling trapped as the speaker is. 

Finally, Roethke addresses his father’s violence in lines nine through twelve, where it appears to have escalated to a climax:

“The hand that held my wrist

 Was battered on one knuckle

At every step you missed

My right ear scraped a buckle” (9-12)

Roethke provides evidence of further violence in his choice of words through this stanza; his revelation of the “battered knuckle” in line 10, most likely means his father was hitting him rather hard. Another example of a common domestic violence trend is the statement where Roethke says that his right ear was scraped by a buckle in line 12. A common form of violence, and punishment is the use of a belt, and belt buckle to cause physical harm to and individual, and based on the poem Roethke most likely experienced the violent wrath of his father’s belt. As the poem has progressed so has the father’s violence.  What started as what one may call horseplay has taken a dramatic, but expected, twist. The violent actions of the father seem to be climaxing, and the speaker is all too familiar with the events the speaker has experienced in the past. The climax of the destructive habit his father has not only effects his father, but the speaker himself and his mother.  These developments in the story act as concrete evidence of the violence the speaker was being exposed to and experiencing.

In Roethke’s My Papa’s Waltz there is an evident theme of violence due to his father’s alcoholism.  Although the speaker is ambiguous as to what is occurring, the diction, and tone of the poem suggest an extremely violent event that Roethke calls a “waltz”.  The speaker experiences an extremely violent household, but fails to accept it for what it is, and instead he substitutes these violent words and actions with a more positive spin. The boy in this poem could be described as trapped, as he appears not to be able to break out of the waltz. Many victims of similar domestic violence often feel trapped by the circumstances of their abuse.  Throughout the poem it seems as if this is the speakers cry for help, knowing he cannot cut lose from this horrible relationship.