Robert Hayden\'s \"The Whipping,\" and Theodore Roethke\'s

¶ … Robert Hayden's "The Whipping," and Theodore Roethke's "My Papa's Waltz" describe child abuse. Both poets have similar approaches to this weighty and sensitive subject matter. Hayden and Roethke avoid cliches, self-righteousness, or judgmentalism, instead choosing to focus on the complex psychology underlying these issues. However, neither poet is willing to overlook the need for compassion and sympathy, even when dealing with abusive parents. This isn't to say that Hayden and Roethke are insensitive or apologetic; quite the contrary, both poets convey the pain and suffering associated with child abuse. Using exquisite lyrics and diction, the general theme is easy to figure out in both these poems. However, Hayden's is told from the perspective of an onlooker or neighbor, while Roethke's poem is told in first person, by the abused child. "The Whipping" is written in free verse without rhymes, while "My Papa's Waltz contains a rhyme scheme. In spite of their different literary and poetic styles and structures, both Hayden's "The Whipping" and Roethke's "My Papa's Waltz" convey the pain of child abuse.

The Whipping" is told through the eyes of a passer-by or a neighbor witnessing an old woman "whipping the boy again." This implies that the act is repetitive. The point-of-view is third-person, from an outsider looking in just as the reader of the poem looks in on the action. The woman narrating the poem obviously feels powerless over the abuse, just as the mother with the frowning countenance in "My Papa's Waltz" seems powerless over her husband's actions. In Roethke's "My Papa's Waltz," it is implied that the abuse is long-standing because the metaphor of the waltz signifies an ongoing dance. "My Papa's Waltz" is also told in past tense, about events that happened in the past over the course of time. In contrast, "The Whipping" is told in present tense, but the story still refers to continuous beating of the boy.

The diction in these two poems is different. Hayden uses some alliteration and other tools that make the poem sound lyrical. "She strikes and strikes the shrilly circling / boy," is a particularly musical line. Instead of using a rhyme scheme, Hayden uses other literary techniques such as diction and stress to create poetic rhythm. This musical quality parallels the motif of music in "My Papa's Waltz." Ironically, the poets choose to indirectly associate child abuse with music, which is normally associated with joy. However, in "My Papa's Waltz," the connection is more apparent than with "The Whipping" because of the title of the poem. Also, the diction in Roethke's poem contains numerous references to dancing. Lines like "Such waltzing was not easy," and "You beat time on my head" refer to the dance. Child abuse is connected to dancing, which is an unusual and provocative association. The child in Roethke's poem might have some sympathy toward her abusers. Likewise, the woman witnessing the abuse of the boy in "The Whipping" offers some compassion in the last few lines of the poem: "And the woman leans muttering against / a tree, exhausted, purged-- / avenged in part for her lifelong hidings / she has had to bear." In other words, she is probably perpetuating abuse that was perpetrated on her. In a sense, she is also a victim. While the poets do not condone child abuse, they offer uniquely sympathetic perspectives on the parents.