            The poem “My Papa’s Waltz” by Theodore Roethke tells the story of a boy and his alcoholic father. Repetition is used in a variety of ways in this poem. The most obvious use of repetition in the poem is in the word waltz, which appears in the title, first, and last stanzas. A less obvious use of repetition is in the use of phrases that have the meaning of grabbing something. These phrases are used three times throughout the poem.  In “My Papa’s Walt’z by Theodore Roethke, the author tells the story of an alcoholic father and the abusive relationship with his son by through the use repetition of the use of the waltz dance.

In the first stanza the word waltz is used when describing how the small boy got dizzy upon smelling his father’s breath where “such waltzing was not easy.” A waltz is a dance where the two partners spin around in circles on the dance floor. At first glance, the use of the word waltz could be interpreted as the boy spinning around because he was dizzy from his father’s alcohol-scented breath. When reading deeper into the poem, the use of the word waltz could also mean that the alcoholic, abusive behavior of his father was a cycle, where the waltzing that the boy described as “not easy” was his father’s behaviors repeating in an endless cycle, much like a waltz that spins around on a dance floor. The fourth stanza contains the phrase “waltzed me off to bed” where the word waltzed seems to have a different meaning than in the first stanza. When used in this line, it appears the author is talking about his father quickly picking him up and carrying him to bed. This contrast to the first use of the word could possibly represent a phase of his father where after treating his son poorly he goes through a period of caring for his son, furthering the idea of the cycle of his father’s behavior being similar to the spinning cycle of partners dancing a waltz.

Throughout the poem there is repetition of phrases that give off the meaning of a firm grasp. The first stanza has the phrase “but I hung on like death” where the boy is holding onto his father because he is dizzy from his father’s alcohol-scented breath and is trying not to fall over. The third stanza contains the line “the hand that held my wrist” where the boy’s wrist is in a strong grasp by his father. The fourth stanza has the phrase “still clinging to your shirt,” where it seems the boy is holding his father close to him as he’s being taken to bed.

The first and fourth stanzas are similar in that the young narrator is holding onto his father. The phrases are worded in a way that allows the reader to assume that the boy needs his father for his safety. For instance, the phrase “hung on like death” implies that the boy would be in danger if he lets go of his father. In the third stanza it is the father that is holding onto the son. The inclusion of the words “held my wrist” allows the reader to assume that the way the boy is being grabbed is not gentle, as someone who is held at the wrist is usually being forced somewhere or has done something to anger their handler. The stark contrast in who is being held and how they’re being held is ironic in a way. The boy is holding onto his father for his own safety while his alcoholic father is grabbing him in a violent manner; the boy is clinging to someone for his own safety while that same person treats him poorly.

The relationship the boy has with his alcoholic father is stereotypical of someone who being abused. The boy who is grabbed violently at the wrist by his father later holds onto him tightly so he doesn’t fall, typical of abuse victims that stay by the side of their abusers. Often these victims get caught in an abusive cycle. The cycle that abuse victims get caught in relates to the boy in the poem because despite his poor treatment, he still clings to his father. The cyclic nature of the abuse the boy faces and then his attachment to his father relates to the overall theme of a waltz.

Throughout the poem there is a change in who is grabbing whom. This cycle that rotates from the son holding onto his father, to the father holding onto his son, back to the son holding his father goes with the idea of waltzing that is seen in the title and throughout the poem. While dancing a waltz the two partners dance around in circles across a dance floor, which can be seen as a cyclic motion. The cycle of the father and son grabbing one another throughout the poem relates to the waltzing theme because both involve a round and round cycle. Throughout the poem there is a contrast in who is grabbing whom. At first it is the son holding onto his father, then it is the father grabbing his son, and then it is the son grabbing his father. This cycle demonstrates the cyclic nature of abuse where the victim returns to the abuser, only for the cycle to repeat itself. This relates to the overall theme of waltzing that is displayed throughout the poem where the partners dance around in circles.
