1. My Papa’s Waltz - By Theodore Roethke Presentation by: Kylie Love, Erin Wolff, and Zoe Zimmerman

2. Thesis In his poem “My Papa’s Waltz”, Theodore Roethke, through the use of metaphor, rhyme scheme, and paradoxical diction, argues that while abuse causes pain and suffering, along with the fear comes admiration of the abuser.

3. Tone Ominous “But I hung on like death” (3) “You beat time on my head” (13) Reflective “The whiskey on your breath Could make a small boy dizzy” (1-2) “Such waltzing was not easy” (4) Forgiving You beat time on my head With a palm caked hard by dirt Then waltzed me off to bed Still clinging to your shirt (13-16)

4. 1.Extended Metaphor The entire poem can be read as a metaphorical euphemism. “Waltzing” is in reality, child abuse.

5. Effects of Metaphor The metaphorical “waltzing”, a beautiful controlled dance with falls and rises, is used to disguise child abuse which in turn contributes to the poem’s disturbing tone by associating perceived affection with obvious violence.

6. Metaphor Examples: “You beat time on my head With a palm caked hard by dirt,” -(Line 13-14) “The hand that held my wrist Was battered on one knuckle,” -(Line 9-10) “At every step you missed My right ear scraped a buckle,” -(Line 11-12)

7. 2. Rhyme Scheme and Meter The overall rhyme scheme of the poem is ABAB and the meter is a iambic trimeter. So What: The musicality of the poem contrasts with the darker content, revealing that the outside facade doesn’t match the inside truth.

8. Examples of Rhyme Scheme and Meter The whiskey on your breath Could make a small boy dizzy But I hung on like death Such waltzing was not easy (Line 1-4) The hand that held my wrist Was batt/ered on one knuckle (Line 9-10)

9. 3. Paradoxical diction The diction illustrates love v. fear/pain of father “Hung on like death” (3) “We romped until the pans slid from the kitchen shelf” (5-6) “My right ear scraped” (12) “Then waltzed me off to bed still clinging to your shirt” (15-16) The diction makes the poem lighter, though the topic is very serious. The paradox creates the theme that the small boy who was abused, though he feared his father, still loved him despite the pain he caused.