
You are a seven-year-old boy, and you have stayed up past your bedtime just to see your father come home from work. He opens the door and hardly has time to smell the dinner left on the stove for him before you have jumped into his arms. You can smell the strong whiskey on his breath, but you don’t mind, for that scent will always remind you of him. The two of you waltz around the kitchen until your hero puts you to bed with a smile on your face. This is how I interpret the text of “My Papa’s Waltz” by Theodore Roethke. I believe Roethke is illustrating a loving moment between a father and son due to three themes I found while reading the poem: a hardworking father, an eloquent dance, and the loving son. These elements are profound in the story and I think the meaning is clear after one considers the use of these symbols.

A father is the “rock” of a family, and he is supposed to provide a safe, loving household for his family by being a hard worker, and Roethke does a great job of depicting this in the poem. “The whiskey on your breath…” (90), here The whiskey can be a symbol of the father’s hardworking nature as many men will have a drink after a long day’s work in order to “blow off steam”. A father must work hard in order to ensure the well-being of his family, and that is proved in the poem with this line, “With a palm caked hard by dirt,”(91). At the end of the day, a father’s family is the most important thing and a palm caked hard by dirt proves the man’s working hard at his job which seems to be a rigorous job if it requires getting his hands dirty. Lastly, in the quotation, “The hand that held my wrist Was battered on one knuckle;”(91) the man’s hardworking nature is illustrated again as a battered hand proves the amount of work the father puts into his job for his family. Roethke uses symbols such as whiskey, dirt and a knuckle to describe a family man who works very hard for his family.

The Waltz is a very sophisticated dance and I believe Roethke used this particular dance for a reason. Fathers are expected to teach their children throughout their young lives, and a perfect lesson to be taught would be a dance. “Such waltzing was not easy”(90). Here, the young boy is trying to “keep up” with his father’s dancing demonstrating a heartwarming moment between a father and son. Also, in the quotation, “At every step you missed My right ear scraped a buckle”(91), the image of youth is evident as the boy’s head hardly reaches his father’s waistline once again proving the concept of love between a man and his son. Another act of love a father can demonstrate to his child would be in putting him/her to bed, just like the father in this poem does, “Then waltzed me off to bed Still clinging to your shirt”(91). The image of a father carrying his child to bed is innocent and loving, and for that reason along with the idea of teaching a lesson and the idea of the youth, I believe Roethke’s father-son waltz is perfect for this poem.

This story would be nothing without the son. The son does not mind the smell of strong liquor on his father, “The whiskey on your breath Could make a small boy dizzy; But I hung on like death:”(90). For a small boy, smelling liquor would certainly not be a pleasant encounter, but this boy is too focused on having his dad home and spending time with him. I know that when I was little I would always wait up for my dad to come home from work, and there was nothing anyone could have done to get me off of him because I had not seen him all day and just wanted to be with him, and I believe this boy is feeling the same way. The line that encompasses this whole poem is, “Then waltzed me off to bed Still clinging to your shirt”(91). The young boy is carried off to his bed by his father, and once again, the idea of a loving father-son relationship is demonstrated. The son in “My Papa’s Waltz” is crucial to the story, and the boy does a wonderful job of depicting a heartfelt father-son relationship.

Meaning is everywhere in this poem, but I believe the most prominent interpretation of this story is a loving father who comes home and has a special moment with his son before bed. For me, my father is one of the most important people in my life, so I can relate to this story and remember what it was like waiting for my dad to come home. Images of a sweet father-son relationship are abundant in this story, and I think anyone who reads this will agree. From the symbols of: the hardworking father and the waltz to the son, Roethke does a superb job of illustrating the relationship between a hardworking, family man and his young, innocent son and a care-free, loving moment they spend together one night. 
