The poem “Those Winter Sundays” by Robert Hayden shows us how love can be presented in ways that are not necessarily obvious at the time. The speaker of the poem is an adult, most likely a man, who looks back on his childhood and sees a different perspective than he did so many years ago. This child's father is the main character throughout this short but powerful sonnet. The title of the poem presents some ideas to the audience. Firstly, it's winter, which means it's cold and secondly, it's Sunday. Sunday has always been considered the "holy day", and even more so at the time the poem was written. Sunday is a day of rest and no work should be done. The most important word in the first line of the poem is “also.” This shows us that on Sunday, like every other day of the week, this man gets up early to take care of his family. The first stanza contains a powerful message contained within the five lines. The father gets up before everyone else, in the dark cold of the house, gets dressed and lights a fire to keep everyone warm. This stanza also shows that the father was a hardworking man "with cracked hands that ached from working during the week." (3-4).” The last line “No one ever thanked him (5)” demonstrates that no one appreciates what he did to keep them warm and for the dedication he has to his family. The second stanza is from the child's point of view. He did the same thing his father did by getting up and getting dressed, but he did it in the warmth of the fire his father had suffered to light. After describing the freezing cold in which his father lived, he declares: "When the rooms were warm, he called me, and slowly I got up and got dressed(7)" which illustrates that it is already sunny in home... ... middle of paper ...... good shoes too”. The art of repetition in the last lines “What did I know, what did I know of the austere and solitary offices of love? puts more emphasis on the emotion behind the words. This gives birth to a boy who is now a man and who fully understands the wrongs he did to this man who loved him so much. This is a man who truly regrets not understanding the affection his father showed him all those years ago and he only wishes he had it. I chose the mode of this poem to be thematic. The theme of love determines the understanding of the poem for the readers. Although the love the father feels for his child is not directly expressed and the son has not realized the affection his father showed him as a child, it is understood by the reader because of the actions of the father. Works Cited by Robert Hayden. “These winter Sundays”. www.poets.org. Last access 3.9.2014