The main problem in this poem, divorce is a common problem that harms everyone involved in its circumstances. However, in the first line, the narrator states, without shame, that he was happy when his parents divorced. This strange feeling is not often associated with children when their parents separate; the feeling is usually one of remorse and sadness. This strange feeling is made reasonable by the fact that it is stated that his mother "took him and took him silently" - a rather dark selection of words which suggest that the father is the source of the family's difficulties (1-2). The father's departure is even compared to that of arguably one of the most hated presidents in American history, revealing that the children and mother had no desire for him to stay. Additionally, the speaker expands on the father's issues after