The way that Father William responds in stanza 2 shows that
Father William
Father William likes to show off
by Lewis Carroll (1832-1898)
"YOU are old, Father William," the young man
said,
*And your hair has become very white;
And yet you incessantly stand on your head-
Do you think, at your age, it is right?"
Father William doesn't take
himself too seriously
Father William was once an
athlete
"In my youth." Father William replied to his
son.
"I feared it might injure the brain;
But, now that I'm perfectly sure I have none,
Why, I do it again and again."
Father William takes foolish
chances with his health