i think, if it is true that roethke did have a great relationship with his father, that the imagery he has chosen for this poem may have suffered from events to follow long after his writing it. certainly the awareness of child abuse that has grown, as well as the increased intolerance that has grown towards child abuse, in the last thirty years, may have retroactively changed the perspective on such imagery.
if indeed our perspective changes the view of this poem, it serves as an indication that art does not stand alone in and of itself. i can just imagine the debate we could have concerning the resposibility of the artist vs. the responsibility of the audience. where should we draw the line between mispoken and misunderstood?
looking for trouble, mike
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