Homer’s Odyssey and Maggie Atwood’s “Siren Song” every single depict the truly great power of the Sirens of Greek mythology, on a further level, the 2 works explore the destructiveness of women throughout the archetype of the femme inévitable. Both Homer and Atwood highlight the influence women have over men throughout the irresistible temptations of the Sirens. However , throughout the juxtaposition with the two rival points of look at of each composition, two varying portrayals with the Sirens come up.
Created in the point of view of Odysseus, Homer’s composition emphasizes the qualities of masculinity and strength, indicating that the Sirens, though powerful, are no match for the Odysseus great crew. Odysseus recalls his “trim ship¦speeding toward / the Sirens’ island” (1-2), immediately environment a strengthen of self confidence despite the dangerous situation this individual finds himself in, his diction recommending that the condition is totally within just his control. In preparation for the encounter with the Sirens, Odysseus kneads the wax along with his “two solid hands” (4) and administers the precautionary measure to his “comrades one simply by one” (7) before being “lashed by ropes for the mast” (9) himself, not directly characterizing the Sirens while overtly harmful and effective through the formulations necessary to face them, although also characterizing Odysseus great crew because cunning and trusting of one another, indicating their strength as you unit. Upon encountering the Sirens, the boys “[fling] themselves at the oars” (22) and “[spring] up at once as well as to combine [Odysseus] faster with rope on chafing rope” (23-24), further reinforcing the crew’s physical strength as they defeat what could have been completely certain death. Although girls did carry power above men in ancient Greece, the male focused society in the end forced females into subservience and is reflected in Homer’s portrayal from the Sirens.
Atwood’s composition, which demonstrates the point of view of your Siren, stresses emotional electricity over physical power, implying that men are prone through their very own curiosity and through temptation. The audio immediately excites the reader simply by describing “one song everyone / wish to learn: the song / that is irresistible” (1-3), placing a suspenseful tone through enjambed lines that accelerate the pace, pulling someone in, and anaphora that teases the possibility of hearing these song. Also, the Fascinating women appeals right to the reader, declaring she “will tell the secret to you, /¦only to you” (19-20) because “Only you, only you can” (23) save her, creating a seductive develop as the Siren characterizes herself as the but common saying damsel in distress, although utilizing the other person point-of-view to lure the reader to become her main character when actually she is leading him to his death. While men held the dominant position in ancient Greek society, these were susceptible to enticement and seduction because their abundance of physical power was balance by their emotional weakness, which the Sirens take advantage of.
When Homer and Atwood change with their characterization of the Sirens, both poets characterize all of them as manipulative, deceitful, and irresistible, rewarding the motif of the femme fatale through this belief of women in Greek world. In Odysseus’s encounter with the Sirens, they “burst to their thrilling song” (Homer 13), referring to him as “famous Odysseus Achaea’s pride and glory” (Homer 14) with the “honeyed voices” (Homer 17), using flattery in an attempt to entice him to his death. The Sirens likewise guarantee to make Odysseus “a wiser man” (Homer 18) with the “ravishing voices” (Homer 19), making his heart inches[throb] to listen longer” (Homer 20), and further showing the power of their treachery through sensory dialect, had Odysseus not recently been restrained he’d have succumbed to the temptations. Their song is so effective that it “forces men / to start overboard in squadrons” (Atwood 4-5) despite the fact that “anyone who may have heard that / is dead” (Atwood 8-9), not directly characterizing the Sirens because paradigms with the femme fatale because they are alluring to guys but in the end lead to their downfall. Within a patriarchal world, when refused real power, women can resort to all their powers of temptation.
Homer and Atwood equally demonstrate the power women hold over males through the two differing portrayals of the Sirens: Homer, when admitting their very own power, maintains masculinity over the strength in the Sirens, while Atwood upholds the mental control ladies exert more than man, but they the two maintain the stereotype of the épouse fatale. Within a society centered on controlling women, these stereotypes only perpetuated the split as females, being characterized this way sooner or later found that to be authentic and failed to recognize that they may be more.
