Analysis of Leda and the Swan Essay -- English Literature

Analysis of Leda and the Swan. Greek mythology. Analysis of Leda and the Swan. Greek mythology has, throughout history, been the subject of much debate and interpretation. Conjuring up images of bloody battles and crumbling cities, its descriptions of the epic battle between good and evil still have remarkable relevance and continue to resonate with poignancy in our bleak, war-torn society. The poem Leda and the Swan, written by William Butler Yeats, attempts to shed new light on what is arguably one of Ancient Greece's most controversial myths. In this essay I aim to study the poem in more depth, analysing what Yeats says and how he says it. Leda and the Swan is an interpretation of the Greek myth wherein Zeus, in the form of a swan, violated a young woman, who gave birth to Helen and Clytemnestra. Helen's flight with Paris to Troy, leaving her husband Menelaus (Agamemnon's brother) caused the war between the Greeks and the Trojans. Clytemnestra then murdered her husband Agamemnon on his return from victory at Troy. The poem begins with Yeats emphasising the brutality of Zeus' actions, describing the initial impact as a "sudden blow". The two words carry the connotation of brutality, urgency and forcefulness; the harshness of the word "sudden" consolidating the phrase's power. There is an implication that the action is unnaturally rapid, thus godlike and powerful. The power and forcefulness of Zeus' actions is reinforced as the line continues, with the word "great" used to describe the wings of the swan which represents him, while the harshness of harshness of the word "beating" re-emphasising the brutality of Zeus' actions. Furthermore, Yeat's use of the word "great" implies glory and majesty, ... ...self as a swan. It is also clear from the poem that Leda felt ambivalent while being raped - she was unsure of whether to submit or resist. The implication near the end of the poem is that she did attempt to resist (although the "shudder in the loins" and the "white rush" convey the fact that she was raped), yet the question is why this was so. Yeats causes the reader to ponder on whether Leda's fingers were "terrified" because of the act or because of her potential knowledge of the consequences, and he himself near the end of the poem ponders on whether she knew the consequences of the rape before it happened ("Did she put on his knowledge with his power?"). Yeats speaks, on a literal level, about the rape of a young woman, yet he also relates the events of Greek mythology to themes of fate, giving the poem meaning and resonance on a more universal level.