An Analysis of Margaret Atwood's Sirens' Song During her many years as a poet, Margaret Atwood covered a variety of topics across the spectrum of relationship dynamics and the way men and women behave. in romantic association. In much of her poetry, Atwood addressed themes of female subjugation in correlation with male domination, individual dynamics, and even female domination over men within the invisible confines of romantic relationships. With each poem written, the method Atwood used to convey the message of the poem has remained enigmatic. She uses a variety of poetic devices – sometimes layered quite thickly – to communicate themes dealing with human emotion. In the poem Siren Song, Margaret Atwood uses means such as imagery and tone to express and comment on the role of the dominant "mermaid" that some women choose to play in their relationships. “Siren Song” opens with the reader feeling like they have just entered a story told by the speaker. It even seems to give the effect of literally entering a storytelling session a few moments late. In this particular session, the speaker appears to be a woman posing as a mermaid from ancient Greek tradition. In literature, these mythological beings are most often described as creatures with the face of a woman and the feathered body of a bird, cursed to exist as such by the goddess Demeter. They were cursed for witnessing the kidnapping of Persephone, Demeter's daughter, when Hades took her to the underworld. The mermaids supposedly lived on a series of rocky islands, and with the irresistible charm of their songs, they lured sailors to their destruction on the rocks surrounding the islands. The ima...... middle of paper...... with them without depriving itself of the right to exist on its own terms. She is not afraid of her own nature and is not afraid to take the dominant role. However, being a mermaid means never really getting close to anyone – kills don't last long – and so, on some level, her words must be double-edged. She may not be afraid and may not regret the so-called deaths of these men, but she seems to regret the deaths of something else. Perhaps that other thing is his own heart, now seemingly incapable of feeling "normal" feelings. This mermaid may not only be a portrait of a specific female role in romantic relationships, but it may also be a form of commentary on that role. The mermaid can also be seen as a representation of the loneliness that comes from playing with the human heart. With her song, she warns readers about the fate that follows such games..