Formalist Criticism Example in Literature: My Papa's Waltz

Formalism in literature is defined as “concerned exclusively with the text in isolation from the world, author, or reader”. Formalism is a critical approach that does not include psychoanalytic, reader-response, historical, or political approaches. This formalist criticism example story will dive an understanding of how formalist approach look like in comparison to others approaches. The critical approaches are like the five senses. A single approach can be used, but all five coming together help form a better understanding. Formalism is not enough for me as a reader because it limits literature to just the words in the text; using psychoanalytic, reader-response, historical, and political approaches together allows for deeper insight and a better understanding of a work of literature.

From a formalist point of view, “My Papa’s Waltz” by Theodore Roethke is a poem about a young boy dancing the waltz with his drunken father. The father and narrator are dancing the waltz. The waltz is a graceful dance, but the dance that the father and son are performing seems to be quite rowdy as seen in “We romped until the pans Slid from the kitchen shelf”. This poem leaves many questions unanswered using a formalist approach alone. Questions such as was the father an alcoholic andor abusive and why did the father have “a palm caked hard by dirt” are left unanswered. Answers to these questions can be found using other approaches such as a psychoanalytic approach to learn more about the author and a reader-response approach to allow the reader to make a conclusion based on their own opinions.

A psychoanalytical approach, in addition to a formalist approach, would give insight to the author’s mind. “My Papa’s Waltz” is a poem from Theodore Roethke’s book The Lost Son and Other Poem. In “My Papa’s Waltz,” using a formalist approach leaves many uncertainties. The lines “The whiskey on your breath […] You beat time on my head” leaves questions about whether or not the father is an alcoholic and abusive towards the narrator. Using a psychoanalytic approach would allow the reader to analyze the author in order to determine the meaning of the poem. In this case, Theodore Roethke wrote an autobiographical poem about dancing as a young boy with a drunk father. Roethke had a low self-esteem, so he “joined an illegal fraternity [when he was thirteen] called Beta Phi Sigma and learned to drink the bootleg whiskey”. Roethke’s father, Otto, was the owner of a greenhouse that he worked on (Tate). When Roethke was fourteen, his father passed away due to cancer and his uncle committed suicide the same year. He later dealt with alcoholism and bipolar disorder (Tate). At first he used drinking to fit in, but it is possible that he later turned to alcohol to fill an empty void caused by all the trauma he suffered at a young age. The title of the book suggests that Roethke felt lost. It is possible that he wrote “My Papa’s Waltz” in order to look back in his past to find himself. A formalist approach along with a psychoanalytical approach allows readers to not only analyze the text in a work of literature but also the mind of the author.

A reader-response approach, in addition to a formalist approach, allows room for the reader’s interpretation. As seen in “My Papa’s Waltz,” formalism is not enough to determine the meaning of the poem. As a reader, it is hard to eliminate personal experiences and feelings when reading and analyzing. Once again, the line “You beat time on my head” can have different meanings. One reader may believe this line means the father is abusing the child, while another reader may believe the father is just maintaining the beat of the waltz. The poem’s meaning differs from person to person. As a reader, I believe the line means the father is maintaining the beat of the waltz. I grew up with a big, close, happy, and loving family, which is probably why I interpret the poem the way that I do. A reader-response approach along with formalism allows the reader to make a personal interpretationdecision about the meaning of a work.

In “Ballad of Birmingham” by Dudley Randall, using only a formalist approach would allow the reader to see the poem being about tragedy and the relationship of a mother and daughter. The daughter wanted to attend a Freedom March. The mother, concerned for her daughter’s safety, encourages the daughter to go to church instead. The poem emphasizes the color white, which symbolizes purity and innocence, in contrast to the tragic event that takes place next. A bombing occurs in the church the daughter went to, and the poem ends with a mother in distress: “She clawed through bits of glass and brick'. The bombing of the church, a sacred place, illustrates the point that there is no safe in the world. There is a deeper meaning and the reader would have a greater understanding of the poem using a historical approach and political approach.

A historical approach, in addition to a formalist approach, would allow readers to picture what life was like at the time the poem takes place. “Ballad of Birmingham” takes place in 1963. During the spring of 1963, “Martin Luther King, Jr., and the SCLC launched a campaign in Birmingham, Alabama, with local Pastor Fred Shuttlesworth and the Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights to undermine the city’s system of racial segregation”. The daughter was influenced to march because “school-aged volunteers skipped school and began to march. Many submitted politely to arrests, and local jails quickly filled up. The police and fire department set high-pressure water hoses and attack dogs on the youth”. The mother’s fear for her daughter’s safety is due to the arrests and attacks made by the police and dogs on the youth at Freedom Marches. The bombing in the poem was a real event, which was “16th Street Baptist Church bombing, terrorist attack in Birmingham, Alabama, on September 15, 1963, on the predominantly African American 16th Street Baptist Church by local members of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK)”. After the bombing, four girls died and fourteen others were injured. The poem was published in 1965, two years after the bombing happened, to remind the people why they are fighting for Civil Rights. Using a historical approach on “Ballad of Birmingham” provides a deeper insight beyond what formalism allows.

A political approach, in addition to a formalist approach, would provide readers with background information on the political aspects of the work meant for change. Dudley Randall was part of the Black Arts Movement. Randall founded Broadside Press, a publishing house, “producing dozens of broadsides - a printing style in which just one side of paper is used - as part of the Black Arts Movement, a flowering of African-American literature, theater, music and other arts”. The Black Arts Movement shifted towards Marxism in order to not only describe injustice of history, but to promote change. “Ballad of Birmingham” was not only written to document the bombing of the church, but also to promote action like Freedom Marches. A political approach on “Ballad of Birmingham” provides a deeper meaning of works.

A formalist approach can be used on its own, but the addition of one or more approaches offers works of literature more depth and meaning for the reader. Psychoanalytic, reader-response, historical, and political approaches are some examples of other approaches that can be used. As a reader, formalism alone does not offer enough depth to works of literature as would using additional approaches.

Works Cited

• Matthews, Written by Tom. “A Year in History: Timeline of 1969 Events: Historic Newspapers Us.” Historic Newspapers, 5 Jan. 2021, https:www.historic-newspapers.combloga-year-in-history-timeline-of-1969-events.
• McRoberts, Patrick. Roethke, Theodore (1908-1963), https:www.historylink.orgfile5410.
• “Overlooked No More: Dudley Randall, Whose Broadside Press Gave a Voice to Black Poets.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 13 Feb. 2019, https:www.nytimes.com20190213obituariesdudley-randall-overlooked.html.
• Parrott-Sheffer, Chelsey. “16th Street Baptist Church Bombing.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., https:www.britannica.comevent16th-Street-Baptist-Church-bombing.
• Randall, Dudley. “Ballad of Birmingham.” Class handout.
• Roethke, Theodore. “My Papa’s Waltz.” Class handout.
• Salirickandres. “Formalist Criticism Is the First of the Series of Literary Critic.” The Mindsmith, 22 June 2017, https:salirickandres.altervista.orgformalist-criticism.
• Tate, Linda. “Theodore Roethke: ‘My Papa’s Waltz.’” Theodore Roethke: 'My Papa's Waltz', 26 Nov. 2017, https:www.thestoryweb.comroethke.
• “The Black Arts Movement: Overview.” Research Guides, https:libguides.wustl.edubamoverview.
• “Theodore Roethke.” Poetry Foundation, Poetry Foundation, https:www.poetryfoundation.orgpoetstheodore-roethke.
• “Timeline of the American Civil Rights Movement.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., https:www.britannica.comlisttimeline-of-the-american-civil-rights-movement.