kristin

Kristin Koziatek            
Prof. Ginsberg
Dec. 18, 2008.

       How Hayden, and Roethke’s Poems Are Affected By Their Childhoods.

In "My Papa's Waltz" by Theodore Roethke, and "Those Winter Sundays" by Robert Hayden both speakers are grown men looking back to their childhoods. In both poems, relationship difficulties, and emotional distances with their fathers are apparent. However, in Roethke's poem the rocky relationship is shown through the playfulness of a romp between father and son but is also a fearful situation for the boy who "hung on like death"(Backpack Literature, 327) to his father. In Hayden's poem there is a great distance between the boy, and his dad. The grown man looking back only, now, realizes that his father did love him, but had showed it indirectly. Both poems show us a childhood doubt regarding their father's love which was either shown to them in a turbulent, or in an unemotional way. Looking back though, both men realize the love was there, only was shown in a not so obvious way. Looking further into the poet's childhood's and family lives through numerous sources, and text it is obvious that the grown men looking back are actually the poets themselves. Once realizing the poems are written from childhood experiences in an autobiographical sense the reader is able to analyze the poet's words in a deeper manner.
           In many poems the speaker is a made up character. From reading and analyzing "My Papa's Waltz", and then looking at critics for their opinions it is clear that the poem is a retelling of an event from Roethke's past. "My Papa's Waltz", as well as other poem's he has written focus on memories of his childhood. According to an article in "Contemporary Literary Criticism" Otto Roethke, the father of Theodore, was strong, and firm. It is said that his father's strength was a source of admiration, and fear, which came across clearly in "My Papa's Waltz" (Contemporary Literary Criticism, 264). "The Whiskey on your breath/ Could make a small boy dizzy; / But I hung on like death: /  Such waltzing was not easy" (Backpack Literature, 327) is the first stanza and through that alone, the reader can already see that the boy wanted to spend time with his father; no matter how small he was, and no matter how rough the "waltz" was. It seems as if the boy was longing for his father’s attention, the last lines “Then waltzed me off to bed / Still clinging to your shirt (Backpack Literature, 327) shows the reader even though keeping up with his dad was a task in its own for the boy, he still wanted to play with his father.

Theodore Roethke was born in 1908 in Saginaw, Michigan, and like many other post war poet's his poems took on biographical themes that featured key events from his personal life (Kalaidjian, 1).  The poem suggests that the father was a hard working man with the description of his knuckle that was battered on one hand. It is true that Roethke's actual father was a hard working laborer who managed "the largest and most complete floral establishment in Michigan" (Seager, 12). Perhaps, this is why Roethke, as a child in “My Papa’s Waltz” was still clinging to his father’s shirt. Maybe, this was the only time he really got to spend with his father, who was busy with his work.

Otto Roethke died in April in 1923, and it is said that he had a lifelong presence in his son's mind (Seager, 42/ Kalaidjian,2) With many poem's that doubted his dad's love, and traces of pent up anger shown through his words, Theodore's great sensitivity brought on feelings of guilt when his father died (Seager, 26). This gave Theodore a source of pain, and mixed feelings that he wrote about in a lot of his poems. "What has been burned into his memory and what  he writes about are always himself, his father, his mother, more rarely his sister, the greenhouse and it's flowers and it's hard working people, the field behind it, the fishing trips with his father, and his own rambles in the game preserve and the rivers. Instinctively he remembers the period and the area that has been charged with his deepest emotions" (Seager, 163). It is true that Roethke had many mixed emotions regarding his father and this is shown in an autobiographical way in  "My Papa's Waltz". It didn't matter if the pans slid off the shelf, or his ear was scraped, Roethke still showed his willingness to play and dance a metaphorical waltz with his father who showed a slight tenderness within his stern presence.

Another poet who drew from his own personal experiences is Robert Hayden. Like "My Papa's Waltz" by Roethke, Hayden is reflecting on a past event that occurred at home with his father. There are similarities between both poets’ pieces, however with Hayden's it's more of a distant relationship. Both poems show us a sense of mixed blessings given by the fathers, for example, in "Those Winter Sundays" by Hayden, his father makes sure the rooms are warm, and comfortable for his family, but does not directly show his love to his son. Doubt of his father's love during his childhood was apparent, but now as a man, he realizes the things his dad did around the house was his way of showing love.

"Those Winter Sundays" as well, as some of Hayden's other poems, rely on childhood experiences in the Detroit Slum where he grew up (Contemporary Literary Criticism, Vol. 37). Hayden, born Asa Bundy was abandoned as a baby by his biological parents, and left with his neighbors. They raised him as their own, and renamed him Robert Hayden (Fetrow, 1). From an early age there was a displacement of identity. Parental love from his father was a concern for Hayden. (Poetry Criticism, 194). This is shown through "Those Winter Sundays", not blatantly though. "Speaking indifferently to him" (Backpack Literature, 519) is an example of how Hayden was distant from his father. Perhaps, because he really wasn't his father. With the realization of his foster father's love Hayden belatedly acknowledges  the love that, as a boy, he did not appreciate (Fetrow, 65). The ending lines, "What did I know, what did I know / of love's austere and lonely offices?" (Backpack Literature, 519) shows his tribute of gratitude towards his foster dad through his new found awareness of his dad's indirect love (Fetrow, 66) The love may have seemed cold, strict, and unfeeling to Hayden as a child, but the truth is, the hard work the father did to make sure his family was comfortable was how he showed his love. Hayden had a hard life, and had many feelings of insecurity, and abandonment which shows through his doubt of his foster father loving him in “Those Winter Sundays”.

With the realization that the poem's were based on the author's lives, and own personal experiences the poems take on a new, more personal form. As a reader, with the knowledge of the poet's lives, you can begin to question, and learn the real motives and driving forces behind the poetry. Both poems have similarities, they both feature events with their fathers in an autobiographical sense. However, they do differ through the imagery, and tone. Both of these elements are big components within the poems. With the feelings conjured up by them, we can imagine, and begin to truly understand the lives of these poet's and what they are trying to portray through their words and memories of their childhoods.

Fetrow, Fred M. Robert Hayden. Boston: Twayne Publishers, 1984.

Kalaidjian, Walter B. Understanding Theodore Roethke. Columbia: University of South Carolina Press, 1987.

Seager, Allan. The Glass House. McGraw - Hill Book Company, 1968.

Gunton, Sharon R, and Daniel G Marowski. Contemporary Literary Criticism: Vol 37 . Detroit: Gale, 1986

Gale Group. Contemporary Literary Criticism: Vol 101 . Detroit: Gale Cengage Learning, 1997

Poetry Criticism, Vol 6.

     In "My Papa's Waltz" by Theodore Roethke, and "Those Winter Sundays" by Robert Hayden both speakers are grown men looking back to their childhoods. In both poems, relationship difficulties, and emotional distances with their fathers are apparent. However, In Roethke's poem the rocky relationship is shown through the playfulness of a romp between father and son but is also a fearful situation for the boy who "hung on like death"(327) to his father. In Hayden's poem there is a great distance between the boy, and his dad. The grown man looking back only, now, realizes that his father did love him, but had showed it indirectly. Both poems show us a childhood doubt regarding their father's love which was either shown to them in a turbulant, or in an unemotional way. Looking back though, both men realize the love was there, only it shown in a not so obvious way. Looking further into the poet's childhood's and family lives through numerous sources, and text it is obvious that the grown men looking back are actually the poets themselves. Once realizing the poems are written from childhood experiences in an autobiographical sense the reader is able to analyze the poet's words in a deeper manner.

     In many poems the speaker is a made up character. From reading and analyzing "My Papa's Waltz", and then looking at critics for their opinions it is clear that the poem is a retelling of an event from Roethke's past. "My Papa's Waltz", as well as other poem's he has written focus on memories of his childhood. According to an article in "Contemporary Literary Criticism" Otto Roethke, the father of Theodore, was strong, and firm. It is said that his father's strength was a source of admiration, and fear, which came across clearly in "My Papa's Waltz" (Contemporary Literary Criticism, 264). "The Whiskey on your breath/ Could make a small boy dizzy;/  But I hung on like death:/  Such waltzing was not easy" (327) is the first stanza and through that alone, the reader can already see that the boy wanted to spend time with his father; no matter how small he was, and no matter how rough the "waltz" was.

    Theodore Roethke was born in 1908 in Saginaw, Michigan, and like many other post war poet's his poems took on biographical themes that featured key events from his personal life (Kalaidjian, 1).  The poem suggests that the father was a hard working man with the description of his knuckle that was battered on one hand. It is true that Roethke's actual father was a hard working laborer who managed "the largest and most complete floral establishment in Michigan" (Seager, 12). Otto Roethke died in April in 1923, and it is said that he had a lifelong presence in his son's mind (Seager, 42/ Kalaidjian,2) With many poem's that doubted his dad's love, and traces of pent up anger shown through his words, Theodore's great insensitivity brought on feelings of guilt when his father died (Seager, 26). This gave Theodore a source of pain, and mixed feelings that he wrote about in a lot of his poems. "What has been burned into his memory and what  he writes about are always himself, his father, his mother, more rarely his sister, the greenhouse and it's flowers and it's hard working people, the field behind it, the fishing trips with his father, and his own rambles in the game preserve and the rivers. Instinctively he remembers the period and the area that has been charged with his deepest emotions" (Seager, 163). It is true that Roethke had many mixed emotions regarding his father and this is shown in an autobiographical way in  "My Papa's Waltz". It didn't matter if the pans slid off the shelf, or his ear was scraped, Roethke still showed his willingness to play and dance a metaphorical waltz with his father who showed a slight tenderness within his stern presence.

     Another poet who drew from his own personal experiences is Robert Hayden. Like "My Papa's Waltz" by Roethke, Hayden is reflecting on a past event that occured at home with his father. There are similarities between both poet's pieces, however with Hayden's it's more of a distant relationship. Both poems show us a sense of mixed blessings given by the fathers, for example, in "Those Winter Sundays" by Hayden, his father makes sure the rooms are warm, and comfortable for his family, but does not directly show his love. Doubt of his father's love during his childhood was apparent, but now as a man, he realizes the things his dad did around the house was his way of showing love.

     "Those Winter Sundays" as well, as some of Hayden's other poems, rely on childhood experiences in the Detroit Slum where he grew up (Contemporary Literary Critcism, Vol. 37) Hayden, born Asa Bundy was abandoned as a baby by his biological parents, and left with his neighbors. They raised him as their own, and renamed him Robert Hayden. From an early age there was a displacement of idenity. There was a concern of parental love from father Hayden (Poetry Criticism, 194). This is shown through "Those Winter Sundays", not blatantly though. "Speaking indifferently to him" (519) is an example of how Hayden was distant from his father. Perhaps, because he really wasn't his father. With the relization of his foster father's love Hayden belatedly acknowledges  the love that, as a boy, he did not appreciate (Fetrow, 66). The ending lines, "What did I know, what did I know / of love's austere and lonely offices?" shows his tribute of gratitude towards his foster dad through his new found awareness of his dad's indirect love (Fetrow, 66) The love may have seemed cold, strict, and unfeeling to Hayden as a child, but the truth is the hard work the father did to make sure his family was comfortable was how he showed his love.

   With the realization that the poem's were based on the author's lives, and own personal experiences the poems take on a new, more personal form. As a reader, with the knowledge of the poet's lives, one can begin to question, and learn the real motives and driving forces behind the poetry. Both poems are similar because they are both about their fathers in an autobiographical sense, they do differ as well though. Imagery, and tone are big components within the poems, with the feelings conjured up by them, we can imagine, and begin to truely understand the lives of these poet's and what they are trying to portray through their words and memories of their childhoods.