http://www.youtube.com/watch
?v=q1B16m_JE4U
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E
w6HmIOAcGE
Leda
• In Greek mythology, Leda was daughter of the Aetolian king Thestius,
and wife of the king Tyndareus, of Sparta. Her myth gave rise to the
popular motif in Renaissance and later art of Leda and the Swan.
• She was the mother of Helen of Troy, Clytemnestra, and Castor and
Pollux.
• Leda was admired by Zeus, who seduced her in the guise of a swan. As
a swan, Zeus fell into her arms for protection from a pursuing eagle.
• Their consummation, on the same night as Leda lay with her husband
Tyndareus, resulted in two eggs from which hatched Helen (later
known as the beautiful "Helen of Troy"), Clytemnestra, and Castor and
Pollux.
• Which children are the progeny of Tyndareus, the mortal king, and
which are of Zeus, and are thus half-immortal, is not consistent among
accounts, nor is which child hatched from which egg. The split is
almost always half mortal, half divine, although the pairings do not
always reflect the children's heritage pairings.
• Castor and Pollux are sometimes both mortal, sometimes both divine.
One consistent point is that if only one of them is immortal, it is Pollux.
It is also always stated that Helen is the daughter of Zeus.
Read the Poem
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zblFUbFys
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Reception of the Poem
• “Leda and the Swan” is a violent, sexually explicit poem
that has all of the lyricism and complexity of Yeats’s
later work, with its plain diction, rhythmic vigour, and
allusions to mystical ideas about the universe, the
relationship of human and divine, and the cycles of
history.
• It can be seen as a poem about the way a single event
is to be understood as part of a larger scheme; the
result of the god’s assault on Leda is the birth of Helen
of Troy, the subsequent destruction of early Greek
civilization, and the beginning of the modern era.
• It has also been suggested that the poem, which was
first written (and later revised in this present form)
during the Irish Civil War of 1922–1923, is intended to
draw attention to the violence that beset Yeats’s
homeland during that time.
First glance at the Language
Note down how Yeats’ choice of verbs and
adjectives help to create a contrast between Zeus
and Leda.
• Yeats combines words indicating powerful action:
“sudden blow”, “beating”, “staggering”,
“shudder”, “mastered”, “burning”
• with adjectives and descriptive words that
indicate Leda’s weakness and helplessness:
“caressed”, “helpless”, “terrified”, “vague”,
“loosening”
• This increases the sensory impact of the poem.
How is the Poem structured?
• “Leda and the Swan” is a sonnet, a traditional
fourteen-line poem in iambic pentameter.
• The structure of this sonnet is Petrarchan with a clear
separation between the first eight lines (the “octave”)
and the final six (the “sestet”), the dividing line being
the moment of ejaculation—the “shudder in the loins.”
• The rhyme scheme of the sonnet is ABAB CDCD
EFGEFG.
• The poem may be divided in two halves. The first
comprises the violent encounter of Zeus and Leda
ending in ‘a shudder in the loins’,
Consider these interpretations of the Poem. Make reference to
his other poems in your discussion.
1. This is an intense description of a mythical story,
bringing home the power and continued
relevance of myths to the modern world.
2. This is a poem about the conflicts in Yeats’
psyche; he is both Leda and the swan.
3. The poem is an allegory for the "rape" of Ireland
by its colonial masters, the British.
4. The poem is showing how one event can lead to
the end of one era and the start of a new – the
violent birth of change
Historical Readings…
• Historically, the poem could relate to the making of Ireland, just as the
original Leda and the Swan related to the making of Greece.
• The events of Easter 1916 ended in a disaster but five years later Ireland
became an independent state.
• “The feathered glory” of England engendered disaster after disaster with
Ireland, and only after a few years of independence, the country is still “so
caught up” and “so mastered.”
• Isn’t the powerful England the “indifferent beak” that could let Ireland
drop?
• Ireland did not finalize its constitution until 1937, and withdrew from the
British Commonwealth in 1948. Yeats was a senator in the newly formed
state and should have been preoccupied with the early attempts at writing
a constitution.
• To “put on his knowledge with his power” could refer to adopting the laws
of England, which is surely a difficult thing to do in such circumstances:
who wants to adopt the principles of the aggressor?
• Sexual tension and politics make a difficult marriage. Leda and the Swan
could not only be the historical description of the relationship between
England and Ireland, but also Yeats’ expression of his own sexual power
and frustrations.