Roethke & Salinas Blog

 Authors Theodore Roethke and Luis Omar Salinas describe the time spent with their father as a mysterious, yet important part of their lives. In Roethke's poem “My papa's waltz” the narrator is in the kitchen waltzing with his father, and as he’s dancing he recognizes subtle, yet noticeable characteristics of his father. He starts the poem off with the line, “The whiskey on your breath could make a small boy dizzy”. He also mentions “the hand that held my wrist was battered on one knuckle”. These descriptions of his father provide mystery and appreciation. Although these things about his father are true, the father still takes the time to waltz and spend time with his children. In Salinas' poem the narrator is walking to town with his father  to purchase a newspaper. The tone of this poem is less mysterious and appreciative. In one line the author states, “we argue about the price of pomegranates. I convince him it is the fruit of the scholars”.  Salinas also says, “The truth of it is, he’s the scholar and when the bitter-hard reality comes at me like a punishing evil stranger, I can always remember that here was a man who was a worker and provider.” The author exemplifies that his father is a man of many responsibilities and he’s appreciating those actions through the usage of his words. He calls his father a scholar to demonstrate that among all the sacrifice his father made, he still sees him as a scholar/ role model.