The Importance Of Sirens In The Great Gatsby

The natural human desire to know more about the world around them is evident, and the sirens will take advantage of this desire by promising them the knowledge

Mythical creatures known as Sirens have a reputation of luring sailors to their deaths by singing enchanting songs causing them to crash into the nearby rocks. In the epic poem, “The Odyssey" Homer depicts Sirens as beautiful creatures that lure men to their death. Sirens also show up in the epic poem “Siren Song” by Margaret Atwood. Homer depicts Sirens as alluring, provocative, and omnipotent creatures while Atwood depicts them as dismal, unsightly, and conniving creatures. The contrasts between Homer’s malevolent Sirens and Atwood’s grim Sirens can be seen through the use of literary devices such as diction, imagery, and point of view.

When he first walks in Nick judges Tom and Daisy's lives based on the appearance of the house, perfect and romanticized, yet he soon learns that this first impression is an overstatement. Nick's use of diction such as 'fragilely bound' (12) and 'French windows' (12) connote that their lives may look perfect on the

Sirens are often viewed as birds with heads of women who have dashing voices. In both poems and separate perspectives the reader gets a closer view of what a Siren actually is and how the authors want them to be seen. In the Odyssey and the “Siren Song”, point of view, tone and imagery define how the Sirens’ portrayal. Some differences and similarities help the reader view them.

Daisy’s sudden, simple respect for the truth is startling to the reader because Nick’s perceptions of her throughout the novel are so very limited to her superficial manner … her stubborn honesty … is a logical outgrowth of her inner struggle to resolve conflicting needs. It is a brief, futile attempt to declare emotional independence (Fryer 54).

The Great Gatsby is a symbol itself. The Great Gatsby was written to represent the rise and fall of the American Dream. The author places the rich and wealthy lifestyle on a high pedestal while he shows the dramatic consequences of moral and social decay amongst the characters. As each turning point is revealed, the American Dream slowly crumbles in the selfish hands of those who remain ignorant to anything else in the world. The significance of the many symbolic elements in The Great Gatsby plays a role in revealing the underlying themes of the American Dream, the ongoing clash between love and wealth and social and moral destruction.

In Greek mythology, sirens were sea nymphs who used their sweet song to lure mariners to their death. The nature of the sirens and their origin story prove that most women, in Greek culture, were a depiction of someone who will seduce men and lead them to their doom. Women were the givers of life in an age when the processes of conception, fertility and childbirth were still deeply mysterious and little understood. With this, men wanted women to have a limited role in Greek culture because men feared the power that women have. Even though there were powerful female figures, like Athena and Aphrodite, the majority of women is represented as what men fear and made sure women had a limited role in Greek mythology and society. In Greek culture women were perceived as beautiful creatures who will seduce men, but have nefarious intentions, and the myths of women in Greek culture proving that men always feared the power that women could have.

The luxurious tone of Daisy’s voice snatches the attention of all who are nearby, urging them to listen to her siren-like cry. While at Nick’s house for tea, “ the exhilarating ripple of [Daisy’s] voice was a wild tonic in the rain” takes Nick on a journey, causing him to “follow the sound of it for a moment, up and down, with [his] ear alone, before any words came through” (85). Making Nick stop and listen to the bobbing rhythm of her voice, Daisy captures Nick’s ear and guides it on a riveting expedition. The voice leads Nick’s ear in a consistent pattern of up and down coercing him to listen to every beat. Daisy’s voice is unique in the sense that “it was the kind of voice that the ear follows up and down as if each speech is an arrangement of notes that will never be played again” (9). With the use of a metaphor, Daisy’s voice becomes an arrangement of notes resembling a song, arranged in a specific lyrical pattern. Fresh in the mind of those

Depicting the “Siren Song” as seductive and alluring using the guile likings of a female sirens voice with point of view, tone, and diction. Atwood presents her poem in the point of view of the Sirens as she tries to entice the men with her song she cries out “I will tell you a secret to you/ to you, only to you./ Come closer. This song/ is a cry for help: Help me!/. As a result the Siren tries to sound helpless and desperate, needing to be saved by a strong sailor such as Odysseus and other sailors. In addition Atwood uses tone when the Sirens seductiveness try to make the men feel more masculine and special, when they do this by using their cunningness as female Sirens. To seduce the men the Siren sings “Shall I tell you the secret/ and if I do, will you get me/ out of this bird suit?” Therefore this challenges the men by giving them a mission to rescue a desperate and lonely Siren, yet the Sirens plans are different and they rather have an afternoon snack. Furthermore Atwood draws a detailed image using diction when the Sirens use their cunning wits to get the men to their island with their song, they know it works almost every time, the Sirens even state that “the song that forces

As decades and centuries have gone on, the portrayal of women in literature has evolved. In fact, this can be easily seen when comparing works of literature on a similar topic, such as Margaret Atwood’s “Siren Song” and Homer’s depiction of sirens in “The Odyssey”. In Greek literature and mythology, Sirens were a commonly reoccuring mythical creature. They were often described as half bird and half woman, and they would lure nearby sailors to shipwreck on the coast of their island with their enchanting music and voices. Although both authors are writing about the same subject, the way that the sirens are portrayed differs, perhaps this is likely due to the different time periods in which they were written in; as Atwood’s version was written several centuries later than Homer’s. In Atwood’s “Siren Song” the sirens are characterized as cunning, and as intellectually superior to the men, where as in Homer’s “The Odyssey”, the sirens are characterized as evil yet seductive creatures out to destroy the men’s lives.

The Sirens of Greek mythology are characterised as beautiful but dangerous creatures who lure sailors to their deaths with heir beautiful voices. Daisy's voice is compared to that of a siren's many times. While describing Daisy, Nick says, ‘...there was an excitement in her voice that men who had cared for her found difficult to forget: a singing compulsion, a whispered ‘Listen...’’ (12) and that ‘[Her] murmur was just to make people lean towards her.’ (11) The sirens were said to be the companions of Persephone before she was abducted, and their song a sad melody eternally calling for her return. In The Great Gatsby, Jay Gatsby acts both as Persephone and hapless sailor to Daisy. Through his association with her, he falls in love after meeting her once, ends up ruining himself, and is found dead in the water. He also represents a simpler time for Daisy—one where she wasn't tethered to only one person like the sirens were to Persephone—so she loves him for his ability to make her feel like a carefree young woman again instead of loving him as a person. The fundamentally destructive "love" between the two ruins Jay, like the sailors crashing ships into the rocky

Both Homer’s Odyssey and Margaret Atwood’s poem “Siren Song” present mysterious sirens who lure men by singing a song. Homer and Atwood both demonstrate the enticing nature of sirens and their melody by incorporating tone and diction. Both Atwood and Homer display an enticing tone when describing the sirens, which demonstrates that they are enchanting, yet dangerous creatures. For example, Homer writes, “thrilling song ‘come closer famous Odysseus…moor your ship on our coast so you can hear our song!” The quote demonstrates an enchanting and enticing tone, which emulates the characteristics of the sirens.

“Daisy, Daisy, Daisy!” It is all Gatsby thinks about, doesn’t it get annoying? No, suck it up because the next 787 words are all about Daisy and her association with symbols, her use of symbols, and herself as a symbol. How’s that possible, she’s 100% human in The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald? Don’t worry, the vacuous space upstairs will soon be filled. So, let’s dive in, like a dead “Gatsby” in a pool.

Daisy confides in Nick that she believes “the best thing a girl can be” is a “beautiful fool” which shows us that Daisy is unhappy with the shallow society of the 1920’s. This comment shows the reader’s that Daisy isn’t shallow and empty; she dislikes the impersonal nature of the people around her and wants her daughter to be a “fool” so she doesn’t notice it. This shows that Daisy does have morals and feels strongly for the people close to her. An aspect of Daisy’s character that could suggest that she is immoral is the possible promiscuity associated with her voice. Nick refers to an excitement in her voice that “men found difficult to forget” which

When Nick Carraway first meets Daisy, he states that her voice is irresistible and that “It was the kind of voice that the ear follows up and