
Unfortunately, it is not an uncommon sight to see the lives of children with abusive parents. It is not being said that this is acceptable beyond any means, but children do not have any methods of dealing with issues like this at a young age. Abuse could be in the form of physical, verbal, or other forms such as neglect that kids experience. The hard thing about this is that children naturally want love in which they seek from their parents, despite whether they are abusive or not. When they do not receive this kind of attention from them, that parent may set off a chain-reaction where their kids start acting out. It is hard to predict what a kid might do when he/she acts out, but most kids who do not have a safe and loving environment at home can be more influenced to do such things. Theodore Roethke brings up what may possibly be a specific case of abuse; however, “My Papa’s Waltz” uses literary devices such as similes, symbols, and tone to emphasize the life-long but hopeful struggle for a father’s love. 

Roethke starts “My Papa’s Waltz” by saying “The whiskey on your breath / Could make a small boy dizzy; / But I hung on like death…” (lines 1-2, pg. 90). He could use this simile to describe the way he is holding onto this father, but the meaning he insists is that the way he is holding onto his father is in the manner of not letting go emotionally. He knows that he wants a relationship with his father because that father-son bond to him is sacred. Sacred based on his efforts to still keep trying for his father’s love like when he mentions he was “still clinging to [his] shirt” (Roethke line 16, pg. 91). The narrator is determined to make it work. The narrator wanted to portray his determination with his father to something that would never cease to exist. Death cannot be overcome in life no matter what doctors and medical researchers are creating by way of new vaccines. Even though there have been ways to prevent certain sicknesses and develop anecdotes to diseases, death will prevail among everyone at some point. Doctors can only prolong someone’s life, and death will not give up its mission. Death however does not take its literal meaning, but the concept that death does not escape someone’s fate. Another point is that when people approach the end of their lives, there is a point that death is finally accepted. Roethke uses this idea of acceptance as a proposition to his father that he should just accept that he will not stop searching for his father’s love. He wants his father to just give up avoiding the love he should feel for his son and just give him what he wants. Death does not give up and Roethke makes his point that he will not stop to complete his mission either.  Again, the way Roethke uses this simile is to emphasize the devotion that the character in the poem shows his love and determination for his father’s love, much like the inevitable outcome of death. 

Roethke’s next use of literary devices are symbols. The waltz is a type of dance that has been known through time since it was first originated.  However, the use of the dance in the poem symbolizes the life struggle of Roethke and the search for his father’s love. The structure of the poem symbolizes the three-quarter tempo of a waltz and remains consistent throughout the poem. The use of the tempo aids in the idea that the waltz between the child and his father is a life-long ordeal. His father is also evasive from his son’s efforts to win his love much like how in a waltz, the dancers never embrace each other or cross paths but get close in proximity during the dance. Roethke also noted this life-long journey when he used the “waltzed me off to bed” (line 15, pg.91) symbolism. Bed in this case meant the end of one’s life, similar to how one goes to bed and how it signifies the end of one’s day. Despite the hardship that the child endures, he still wishes for his father’s love even if he has to wait a life time for it. It could mean his entire life or his father’s life. 

Roethke then uses tone that has an effect from start to the end in the poem and does so to emphasize the central theme. Yet tone proves useful too in some of his language in parts of the poem. Although this piece is clearly a poem, the poem first tells a sequence of events like a story that starts with abuse and otherwise painful undertakings. It starts off when the boy smells the whiskey off of his father and gets into messy situations. All while his mother is unhappy about what is happening. The “story” in the poem though takes a turn when the boy is “waltzed off to bed / still clinging to your shirt” (Roethke 91). This turn hits on the stories change of tone where it changes from ill-fated to hopeful. The boy is still clinging to his shirt which means he is still hopeful about, one day, getting his father’s love and attention, thus backing the central theme. Another illustration of Roethke’s use of literary devices is his incorporation of tone for certain verbs. Verbs such as “romped”, “battered”, “scraped”, and “beat” are all harsh verbs in order to create an effect on the reader of despair (Roethke 91). Kid’s lives are not easy in the custody of an abuser, so Roethke harnesses this tone of despair to make the reader empathetic towards the victim. He wants to make the reader feel like he/she is stuck in the position that he is in by incorporating verbs that resonate into his work. The victim still makes the effort for his father’s love through the poem, but the reader has a better understanding as to how hard this feat really is to accomplish. 

Theodore Roethke in “My Papa’s Waltz” uses literary devices such as similes, symbols and tone to emphasize the never-ending life-long but hopeful struggle for a father’s love. So it goes without saying that abuse is a major epidemic. It has to be recognized that kids are suffering yet also confused about whether they want love from their parents or (should) be aware that this is not healthy for their well-being. Roethke hits on the idea well when a child is neglected and abused by a parent. Kids also grow up confused because they are young, which also means that they are not as experienced. Children are only in the process of gaining experience, and to do so at a young age, kids can be naïve. So again, this chain-reaction is set off when children live their lives under this kind of stress. No child should be left to endure this kind of pain.
