Theodore Roethke, via his narrator, describes a childhood memory in which the father and son have a difficult relationship that, “was not easy” (Roethke 4). That relationship is considered a waltz in the poem, where the son and father argue and the son struggles to continue the dance (The father abuses the son and the son continues to love his dad). After looking closely at the poem the underlying themes and meanings of the poem become clearer, of which are the themes of family and admiration. The theme of admiration is shown through the narrator’s effort to cling to his father and accepting his father’s faults. Throughout the poem these flaws are shown, however the son ignores them to keep his relationship that he has with his dad. A theme of family is displayed by the son’s inability to lose sight of his father. The son and dad are spending time together, which the narrator cherishes even later in life, regardless if it is considered abuse or not. Overall the poem depicts themes of family and admiration, in which a son recalls a beloved, but skewed memory. 

The memory the narrator has of his father is meant to be positive, but shows underlying abuse. The man has had enough whiskey that “the whiskey on (his) breath could make a small boy dizzy” (Roethke 1-2). This line by itself shows that the father may have a drinking problem that may also contribute to his abusive tendencies. The man does several things that may be considered abusive. One is that the father grabs the son by the wrist to dance this waltz, which it is rare that someone grabs a wrist without intentions to do harm or force something. It is also said that the hand of the dad “was battered on one knuckle” (Roethke 9-10). This implies that the father’s hand was hurt by hitting the mother who had a “countenance” that needed to be “unfrown(ed)” (Roethke 7-8). This need to be unfrowned is easily interpreted to be that the boy steps in on the sire’s abusiveness to defend his mother, which in return leaves the son beaten by his father. Although the lad is most likely beaten by his dad, he continues to hold on and refuses to give up on his love for him. 

The unconditional love and innate admiration that the narrator has for his father prevents the narrator from seeing his sad childhood. Theodore makes it obvious that the man remembers that “waltz” as a wonderful childhood memory he shared with his father in several ways. In the title alone it shows the child’s admiration for his father by calling him “Papa”, which makes it seem that the narrator respects his father and loves him deeply. The narrator also talks about how he held “on like death” and continued to stay “clinging to your (his) shirt” (Roethke 3, 16). Truly it can be inferred that the narrator continued and continues to love his father regardless of his actions. This inability to see the fault in his father is like many abusive relationships, where the victim refuses to see the awful things in the one abusing them. Therefor the narrator’s recollection is inevitably perplexing as it troubling. 

The narrator recalls his papa’s faults in ways that draw up multiple red flags for parenting. A considerable concern is that the father is drunk enough that the boy could smell it, and his breath “could make a small boy dizzy” (Roethke 2). Drinking alone does not make a parent bad or abusive as long as it is in moderation and the adult can still act appropriately; however; the father did otherwise. This is proven by the father dancing the boy around drunkenly until they, “romped until the pans slid from the kitchen shelf” (Roethke 5-6). Dancing a kid around the kitchen drunk, and knocking things down, while pissing off your wife is not good parenting. The narrator also mentions that the father kept missing steps in the dance of their relationship, “at every step you missed” (Roethke 11). The steps the father missed can easily mean that the father wasn’t there for the boy nor was he a good role model for his child. The narrator also implies that the father took away the boy’s childhood by “beat(ing) time on my head” (Roethke 13). In this it can be inferred that the child also had to mature faster and accept that his father lacked traits of a loving father. These indications that the son realizes contrasts what is originally thought of the poem, and what the narrator tries to remember. 

By the narrator seemingly understanding, accepting, and pitying his father in a way he puts himself above the maturity level of his father. The pity the boy has for his father can be displayed in the boy ignoring his father’s bad parenting, and only focusing on not what their relationship lacked, but what they did have together. The father may have abused the boy, but he still spent time with his son, worked, and cared enough to tuck him in. His father’s employment can be proved by the narrator describing the palm of his father “caked hard by dirt” (Roethke 14), meaning that his father most likely worked manual labor. His father also spent time with the boy, by waltzing him around on his feet after a hard day’s work. After the dance his father even took the initiative to dance him to bed. Ultimately all of the traits of the father and the choices he makes, are not that of one that deserves such admiration or love, but the boy ignores them to have a father in his life.

By choosing to deny his father’s faults, the boy continues to alter his memories of childhood to avoid old problems. In doing so the boy shows his unconditional love for his dad. All of this relates back to the major theme of family and admiration. If the child looked back at his past and only focused on the negative, he wouldn’t have a father or someone to admire. The boy also wouldn’t have much of a family in his life and he might have lived his life completely differently. Conclusively it can be inferred that the narrator skews his memory for the sake of having a family, and keeping admiration for someone he innately loved. 
