Summary:
An analysis of Theodore Roethke's "My Papa's Waltz." The poem is basically an extended metaphor comparing a father and son's relationship to that of a waltz.
Theodore Roethke's My Papa's Waltz is an extended metaphor comparing a father and son's relationship to that of a waltz. The waltz is an intimate dance between two partners, where one leads another. This already describes the type of relationship held between the father and son, a relationship where one dominates the other, the waltz is used to definite the abstract idea of love within an abusive relationship. The title also reinforces this comparison; the waltz belongs to the father, which implies that it is "papa" who leads this dance, as well this relationship in life. The audience in this poem is the boy's father along with a silent spectator, the mother, and the speaker is the young boy himself, which suggests that this poem is a memory of the speaker's childhood, implied by the use.....
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