Leda and the swan
Leda and the swan was written by William Butler Yeats in 1924, a widely anthologized piece with several interpertations. The most commonly accepted version tells a tale of Zeus in the form of a swan coming to earth and impregnating the youthful Leda. As a result of this intercourse Leda produces an egg which brought forth the beautiful Helen of Troy. In a less Literal translation it is written up as "the manifestation of Yeats' unrequited love from Maud Gonne". (Holstad) Miss Gonne being a fellow mystic, member of the 'Heretic Order of the Golden Dawn'. A system where in members believed that physical connection lessons the creativity of the soul and there by only interacts with Yeats on a metaphysical plain during dreams or meditation, has drivn him to vent his human fru
One of which is alliteration, "brute blood" another is the timing of breath and sound, which if read properly will echo the throbbing pulsation of a rape. Yeats uses several devices to show the brutal hand at which the act is being proformed. It also has multiple allussions to Greek Mythology largely inpart to the fact that it is written about Zeus, lord of the Greek gods. A poem of Fourteen lines consisting of two stanzas,one Octave and one sestet, allowing for a repetitive ABAB rhyme scheme. For me it is easier to believe that this piece came from the frustrated, although creative, loins of a man in love with a woman he could not have. HolstadDepartment of EnglishCalifornia State University, Long Beach Yeats's 'Leda and the Swan': Psycho-Sexual Therapy in Action. Im unsure if either of those could be a factual theme. We also have the more abstract vision of violence, the death of Agamemnon and the war of Troy being begought by the violence of the rape. New York: MacMillan, 1950. (Brooks) Yeats cleanses himself of these emotions, in the form of a traditional Italian Sonnet.
Common topics in this essay:
Hargrove Leda,
Troy Agamemnon,
Butler Yeats,
Helen Clytomnester,
Golden Dawn',
Italian Sonnet,
Greek Mythology,
Troy Literal,
Brooks Yeats,
Miss Gonne,
helen troy,
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Acceptance Essays
