January 6, 2011 - "Siren Song" - Margaret Atwood

Text:

“Siren Song” by Margaret Atwood

This is the one song everyone
would like to learn: the song
that is irresistible:

the song that forces men
to leap overboard in squadrons
even though they see beached skulls

the song nobody knows
because anyone who had heard it
is dead, and the others can’t remember.
Shall I tell you the secret
and if I do, will you get me
out of this bird suit?
I don’t enjoy it here
squatting on this island
looking picturesque and mythical
with these two feathery maniacs,
I don’t enjoy singing
this trio, fatal and valuable.

I will tell the secret to you,
to you, only to you.
Come closer. This song

is a cry for help: Help me!
Only you, only you can,
you are unique

at last. Alas
it is a boring song
but it works every time.

Initial Impression:

At first, I thought that the poem, “Siren Song,” was a song about how a siren, a creature that lures in sailors to their death, is intriguing a man. By getting his interest, the siren gets the man to listen to her song, her story. When he listens, however, he will be enraptured and killed. She has warned him, though vaguely, that the only people left alive after hearing this song have forgotten it. Even so, the man remains. And, as the siren pleads for his attention, he steps closer, and she sings her song, killing him.

Paraphrase Poem:

Everyone wants to learn this song, and nobody can resist it. This song makes men do things that they know are stupid and will yield negative results. Nobody knows this song because everyone that has heard it has either forgotten it or has died. Should I tell you the why this song is so special? Will you help me in return? I don’t like being trapped here, looking pretty and fake. There are two others here singing with me; their voices are fatal, like mine. I will tell you the secret – you and only you. Come here. This song is my plea for help, so help me! Only you can help me because you are unique. It is a boring song, but it always gets the job done.

SWIFTT:

Margaret Atwood uses syntax, diction, imagery, figurative language, tone, and theme in her poem, “Siren Song.”

Syntax/Word choice:

The first two stanzas seem detached, while in the fourth stanza, there is a shift to first person point of view. The diction demonstrates a siren drawing men in. She says, “You are unique” so that the man feels special. The song is “irresistible,” something the man cannot live without and is drawn to like a magnet. When the siren pleads, “Help me,” she establishes a sense of friendship which takes advantage of the man’s vulnerability.

Imagery:

Atwood uses bird imagery to refer to the two other sirens. The “feathery maniacs” are the other two sirens while the main siren claims she is in a “bird suit” as a way to fit in with the other sirens.

Figurative language:

There is no figurative language, no usage of simile, metaphor, or personification. However, there is an allusion to sirens, which are mythical creatures, disguised as beautiful women whose voices draw in men. Those men are usually killed, but sometimes they get free and forget the song thereafter.

Tone:

The tone of “Siren Song” is manipulative, pleading, and secretive. The sirens are trying to draw the man in. They tell him he is “unique,” and that nobody else knows this secret song.

Theme:

The theme of “Siren Song” is deception and manipulation. Three sirens trick a man, a sailor, into listening to their song, drawing him in so that they can eventually kill him.

Conclusion:

After analyzing the poem, I think that my initial impression was close to correct. Even though the man sees the skulls littered across the beach, he is lured. Anyone who has heard the song is dead because their song is so beautiful that they die. All of the others who heard this song were killed. Even so, the man remains and is eventually persuaded by the sirens to hear their song.