My Papa's Waltz Literary Devices

In the poem, My Papa’s Waltz, Theodore Roethke reminisces about his youth of tangled empathy of concern and unconditional appreciation regarding his predecessor besides the imperfections his predecessor has. Theodore Roethke shows the emotions of concern and appreciation through word choice, imagery and metaphors in the poem My Papa’s Waltz.

Roethke’s word choices highlight the mixed emotions he feels regarding his predecessor. Through the combination of the words “death” and “waltzing” (l. 3-4) in the first quatrain, Theodore uses these words to describe a deliberate but diverting atmosphere around his predecessor and himself. The image Roethke creates regarding the waltz characterizes the requirement of two individuals to show the togetherness of the duo. Although, Roethke is close to his predecessor, he also declares his concern through words such as “battered” and “scraped” (l. 10-12).

Imagery is used to explain the enjoyable juncture between the son and his predecessor. However, some sections of My Papa’s Waltz show the concern the son has for his predecessor. “We romped until the
For example, “but I hung on like death” (1.3), demonstrates the dependency towards the predecessor and how his son attached onto him. Roethke also uses metaphors like, “still clinging to your shirt” (l.16) to again emphasize the reliance the son has towards his predecessor. The poet uses these metaphors in order to exhibit the endearing feelings the son has towards his predecessor.

In conclusion, the use of language, imagery, and metaphors exhibited in Theodore Roethke’s My Papa’s Waltz is used to describe the infinite devotion the son portrays towards his imperfect predecessor. The imperfections of the predecessor results in the son having diverse emotions of both concern and passion, but ultimately the passion between the son and his predecessor is