Analysis of Margaret Atwoods
From its undistinguished title and neat, fluid three-line stanzas Margaret Atwood's "Siren Song" permits the reader to clearly and accurately absorb her theme. Yet, her allusion to Homer's great work, the "Odyssey", requires the reader to know the importance of the charming song of the fabled Sirens. First referenced in Greek mythology, the Sirens were sea nymphs blessed with an inviting song of intoxicating voice that lured sailors to their deaths. Atwood uses this mythical image to provide the foundation upon which she builds the subject of her poem. She illuminates the relationship between temptation and the price of fulfilling it. Her attempt might be directed appropriately to the nature of the male ego (Homer's victims were, of course, men) or determined to encompass all who face temptation. Whether it is a married man facing a tempting adulteress, a junkie with a sweet needle loaded in her hand, or a reader engrossed in poetic verse, temptation, unchecked, can crash a victim upon its' shores. Void of a complex or ambiguous title, she clearly presents the subject matter in the same manner.
This songis a cry for help: Help me!Only you, only you can,you are uniqueat last. " Temptation, whatever the vice, is gifted with the allure of wine but tempered with the effect of hemlock. It is the plight of man and how he weighs and decides the options laid out before him in life. Is not siren a synonym for alarm? . Like the lure of the Sirens themselves, Atwood provides an almost sensual intrigue to continue reading by asserting the song "forces men" to their fates. "Margaret Atwood makes a poignant statement about the weaknesses of humanity. In the next three stanzas Atwood captivates the reader with the intoxicating effects of desire by taunting them with her secret. Thus, the reader is drawn towards the edge of his temptation, or the anti-climax of incitement. She further entices the audience by inferring the "beached skulls" are the remnants of those that have passed and failed this temptation before. It is not important that the Siren is located on a craggy mass in some unknown water. Atwood's last stanza emphasizes that the result is always the same. ard in squadronseven though they see the beached skullsthe song nobody knowsbecause anyone who has heard itis dead, and the others can't remember. In third stanza Atwood titillates the audience to know the "song nobody knows" despite the fact that death may be its ultimate outcome. Shall I tell you the secretand if I do, will you get meour of this bird suit?I don't enjoy it heresquatting on this islandlooking picturesque and mythicalwith these two feathery maniacs,I don't enjoy singingthis trio, fatal and valuable.
Common topics in this essay:
Homer's Odyssey,
Siren's Song,
Margaret Atwood,
Siren Song,
,
tell secret,
don't enjoy,
song irresistible,
song forces,
beached skulls,
fatal valuable,
third poem,
secret siren,
sirens themselves,
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Acceptance Essays
