Siren Song

Greek mythology may have been created thousands of years ago, but the lessons learned from the legends are still pertinent today. While there may not be gods and goddesses walking among mortals, the same conflicts that existed in the myths still exist now. One of the more popular myths in Greek mythology is about the three Sirens. As half-woman, half-bird hybrids, they were ugly creatures who had to overcompensate with the sounds of their voices. Whenever a ship or boat of sailors would pass by the island they lived on, they would sing a hypnotically beautiful song which lured the sailors to their death by jumping into the water and swimming towards the voices. Sailors that swam up to shore were greeted by the deadly Sirens. Greek literature

In most cases, a poem is either third or first person, but “Siren Song” is in second. This is evident by the use of the pronoun “you” in multiple lines (10,11, 19, 20, 23, 24). The author, the Siren in this case, is speaking directly towards the reader. This particular choice not only helps analyze the poem from the aforementioned devices in the poem, but it also creates a connection to the reader, making it seem as though anyone reading the poem can the subject. This will be discussed in the following

The word choice exemplifies this theme by carefully selecting words that plant a high sense of importance in the reader’s mind. The Siren also uses imagery to portray herself as someone who is helpless to change her situation and needs the help of a stranger in order to make that change happen. The diction in the poem may not seem as though it contributes to the theme because it is general English almost all the way throughout, but it is the “slip ups” in the diction that let the readers see the true intention of the Sirens. The same goes with the form: although it is not an oblivious contributor, without it the message of the poem would have no clear vehicle on which to present itself. The deceit in the poem cannot be realized on the first read-through, though, no matter the intelligence level of the reader. Everyone falls into the trap of self importance on the first read because that is what the poem was designed to do. This could be a sign everyone is a little vain and unobservant. It is not necessarily a bad thing if everything is corrected by the second