My Papa s Waltz
My Papa 's Waltz
Tyrone Bullocks
ENG/125
June 15, 2015
Dr. Sharon Michael- Caldwell
My Papa 's Waltz
This poem is a reflection of an event in the life of a little boy the words are transformed into picture and imagination of a little boy with admiration of his father that he may not see often, and because of the rhyming style of poem, it is clear it is written from a child’s perspective. The little boy recalls an experience dancing a waltz with his father in their home. Although there are many opinions circulating about whether or not his was a positive experience, I think it was. I think this is a memory of a small boy cavorting with his father.
The first stanza tells the reader that the father has had perhaps too much whiskey to drink. The boy says that the smell of his father’s breath made him dizzy. This must mean that the boy is very familiar with his father in this drunken state. This does not necessarily mean that the boy was traumatized by this event, just simply that he knows his father has had some whiskey to drink. He recalls that he had to hang on tight and that it was not easy for him to hold on to his father during this waltz. The waltz is typically a slow ballroom dance in three-quarter time that give the impression that the dancers are gliding around the room. The boy’s dance with his father is hardly gliding around a room considering the boy says he “hung on like death” (Barnet, Burto, & Cain, 2011, p. 786).
In the next stanza the wild waltz continues as the boys and his father romp around the kitchen knocking pans from the shelf. In this stanza, the son recalls his mother’s reaction to this boisterous activity in her kitchen. The son says that his “mother’s countenance could not unfrown itself” (Barnet, Burto, & Cain, 2011, p. 786). Countenance refers to his mother’s expression, an expression that could not change from a frown. His mother could not smile. At this point in the poem perhaps the son is confused about his mother’s reaction. It
Tyrone Bullocks
ENG/125
June 15, 2015
Dr. Sharon Michael- Caldwell
My Papa 's Waltz
This poem is a reflection of an event in the life of a little boy the words are transformed into picture and imagination of a little boy with admiration of his father that he may not see often, and because of the rhyming style of poem, it is clear it is written from a child’s perspective. The little boy recalls an experience dancing a waltz with his father in their home. Although there are many opinions circulating about whether or not his was a positive experience, I think it was. I think this is a memory of a small boy cavorting with his father.
The first stanza tells the reader that the father has had perhaps too much whiskey to drink. The boy says that the smell of his father’s breath made him dizzy. This must mean that the boy is very familiar with his father in this drunken state. This does not necessarily mean that the boy was traumatized by this event, just simply that he knows his father has had some whiskey to drink. He recalls that he had to hang on tight and that it was not easy for him to hold on to his father during this waltz. The waltz is typically a slow ballroom dance in three-quarter time that give the impression that the dancers are gliding around the room. The boy’s dance with his father is hardly gliding around a room considering the boy says he “hung on like death” (Barnet, Burto, & Cain, 2011, p. 786).
In the next stanza the wild waltz continues as the boys and his father romp around the kitchen knocking pans from the shelf. In this stanza, the son recalls his mother’s reaction to this boisterous activity in her kitchen. The son says that his “mother’s countenance could not unfrown itself” (Barnet, Burto, & Cain, 2011, p. 786). Countenance refers to his mother’s expression, an expression that could not change from a frown. His mother could not smile. At this point in the poem perhaps the son is confused about his mother’s reaction. It
References: Barnet, S., Burto, W., & Cain, W. E. (2011). Literature for composition (9th Ed.). Hagerstown, MD: Longman.