"Siren Song" is a poem by the Canadian poet and novelist Margaret Atwood. Told from the perspective of a siren—a half-woman, half-bird creature from Greek mythology whose singing lures sailors to their deaths—the poem explores themes of vanity and seduction, stereotypes about women being helpless, and how the need to feel "unique" makes people vulnerable to flattery. On another level, "Siren Song" also examines the ways in which traditional gender expectations can trap people, pushing them to perform isolating, lonely roles. The poem was published in Atwood's 1974 collection titled You Are Happy.

• Read the full text of “Siren Song”

• “Siren Song” Summary

• “Siren Song” Themes

  • 

    The Trap of Gender Roles

    Where this theme appears in the poem:

    • Lines 4-6
    • Lines 10-18
    • Lines 21-22
    • Lines 23-27
  • 

    Vanity and Seduction

    Where this theme appears in the poem:

    • Lines 1-3
    • Lines 4-12
    • Lines 19-27

• Line-by-Line Explanation & Analysis of “Siren Song”

  • Lines 1-6

    This is the ...
    ... the beached skulls

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 7-9

    the song nobody ...
    ... others can't remember.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 10-12

    Shall I tell ...
    ... this bird suit?

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 13-18

    I don't enjoy ...
    ... fatal and valuable.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 19-22

    I will tell ...
    ... help: Help me!

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 23-27

    Only you, only ...
    ... works every time.

    

    

    

    

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• “Siren Song” Poetic Devices & Figurative Language

  • Enjambment

    

    

    

    

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    Where enjambment appears in the poem:

    • Lines 1-2: “everyone / would”
    • Lines 2-3: “song / that”
    • Lines 4-5: “men / to”
    • Lines 5-6: “squadrons / even”
    • Lines 7-8: “knows / because”
    • Lines 8-9: “it / is”
    • Lines 10-11: “secret / and”
    • Lines 11-12: “me / out”
    • Lines 13-14: “here / squatting”
    • Lines 14-15: “island / looking”
    • Lines 15-16: “mythical / with”
    • Lines 17-18: “singing / this”
    • Lines 21-22: “song / is”
    • Lines 24-25: “unique / at”
    • Lines 25-26: “Alas / it”
    • Lines 26-27: “song / but”

  • Consonance

    

    

    

    

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    Where consonance appears in the poem:

    • Line 2: “like,” “learn”
    • Line 5: “squadrons”
    • Line 6: “see,” “skulls”
    • Line 7: “nobody knows”
    • Line 14: “squatting,” “island”
    • Line 15: “looking,” “picturesque,” “mythical”
    • Line 16: “maniacs”
    • Line 21: “Come closer”
    • Line 23: “you,” “you can”
    • Line 24: “you,” “unique”
    • Line 25: “at last. Alas”

  • Alliteration

    

    

    

    

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    Where alliteration appears in the poem:

    • Line 2: “like,” “learn”
    • Line 5: “squadrons”
    • Line 6: “see,” “skulls”
    • Line 8: “who,” “has,” “heard”
    • Line 15: “mythical”
    • Line 16: “maniacs”
    • Line 21: “Come,” “closer”
    • Line 22: “cry”
    • Line 23: “you”
    • Line 24: “you,” “unique”

  • Anaphora

    

    

    

    

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    Where anaphora appears in the poem:

    • Lines 2-3: “the song / that”
    • Line 4: “the song that”
    • Line 7: “the song”
    • Line 13: “I don't enjoy”
    • Line 17: “I don't enjoy”

  • Repetition

    

    

    

    

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    Where repetition appears in the poem:

    • Line 1: “song”
    • Lines 2-3: “the song / that”
    • Line 4: “the song that”
    • Line 7: “the song”
    • Line 10: “Shall I tell you the secret”
    • Line 17: “singing”
    • Line 19: “I will tell the secret”
    • Lines 19-20: “to you, / to you, only to you.”
    • Line 21: “This song”
    • Line 22: “help: Help”
    • Line 23: “Only you, only you”
    • Line 24: “you”
    • Line 26: “song”

  • Caesura

    

    

    

    

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    Where caesura appears in the poem:

    • Line 2: “learn: the”
    • Line 11: “do, will”
    • Line 18: “trio, fatal”
    • Line 20: “you, only”
    • Line 21: “closer. This”
    • Line 22: “help: Help”
    • Line 23: “you, only”
    • Line 25: “last. Alas”

  • Allusion

    

    

    

    

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    Where allusion appears in the poem:

    • Lines 4-6: “the song that forces men / to leap overboard in squadrons / even though they see the beached skulls”
    • Lines 11-12: “will you get me / out of this bird suit?”
    • Lines 13-18: “I don't enjoy it here / squatting on this island / looking picturesque and mythical / with these two feathery maniacs, / I don't enjoy singing / this trio, fatal and valuable.”

  • Asyndeton

    

    

    

    

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    Where asyndeton appears in the poem:

    • Lines 19-20: “I will tell the secret to you, / to you, only to you.”
    • Lines 23-25: “Only you, only you can, / you are unique / at last.”

• “Siren Song” Vocabulary

  Select any word below to get its definition in the context of the poem. The words are listed in the order in which they appear in the poem.

  • Squadrons
  • Beached
  • Bird suit
  • Squatting
  • Picturesque
  • Mythical
  • Trio
  • Fatal
  • Alas
  • (Location in poem: Line 5: “to leap overboard in squadrons”)

• Form, Meter, & Rhyme Scheme of “Siren Song”

  • Form

  • Meter

  • Rhyme Scheme

• “Siren Song” Speaker

• “Siren Song” Setting

• Literary and Historical Context of “Siren Song”

• More “Siren Song” Resources

  • External Resources

    • A Reading of the Poem — Listen to a recording of the poem.

    • Atwood's Feminist Mythology — This essay from The Curious Reader explores the way that Atwood's feminism informs her poetic retelling of classic myths.

    • "Margaret Atwood Bears Witness" — Check out a 2019 Atlantic article discussing Atwood's use of "personal testimony" in her writing.

    • The Sirens of Greek Mythology — Learn more about the mythology Atwood is drawing from in "Siren Song."

    • Atwood's Biography — Read about Atwood's life and check out more of her work via the Poetry Foundation. 

  • LitCharts on Other Poems by Margaret Atwood

    • Half-Hanged Mary

    • The City Planners

    • This Is a Photograph of Me

    • [you fit into me]

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