Substance Abuse In 'My Papa's Waltz'

The poem also displays alcoholism, which is one of the contributing factors of the effects of a dysfunctional family. In the 1930s, a threat of revolutions had arisen within the society due to the Prohibition of Alcohol. The repealing of the prohibition argued that it, “would provide jobs, stimulate the economy, increase tax revenue, and reduce the lawlessness” to help America restore prosperity after the Great Depression (Levine, and Reinarman, 1991). This ties into the poem because it demonstrates that the reason for the father to be under substance abuse may have been due to his state of unemployment, which came to symbolize, “the failure of managerial work, and suburban family.” The concept of alcoholism derives from its ability, “to affect the quality of family life, negatively impacting the behaviors of family members and devitalizing or fracturing family relationships,” which portrays the dysfunctional relationship that is seen in the poem (Lewis, 1989).
The poem, “My Papa’s Waltz,” uses imagery to depict that, “/my right ear scraped a buckle/” to show how the child is being hurt unintendedly by his parent (lines 12). The term “buckle” also consists of a violent connotation to show that belts were used by parents to punish their children, so it helps sense that the child was being physically