Female Power and Sexual Assertiveness in Yeats' "Leda and the Swan"

Introduction: Yeats and the Mythological Retelling

Through his poem "Leda and the Swan," William Butler Yeats not only depicts a classical mythological tale but also interprets it, generalizing its meaning through a universal theme. Through stunning imagery and cadence, Yeats tells the story of Zeus's seduction of Leda, in which Zeus comes to her in the form of a swan. Drawing on sexual overtones and sensual language, Yeats allows readers to understand the events of the story even if they are not familiar with the mythology. Despite his artful retelling, Yeats manages to universalize his poem, implying not only Leda's seduction but also more general themes having to do with power, sex, and gender roles. One of these themes centers on the role of women. Through three elements of style — imagery, word choice, and structure — Yeats implies that women are both powerful and sexually assertive in "Leda and the Swan."

Imagery of Weakness and Strength

Although at the beginning of the poem Yeats uses images to suggest Leda's weakness, those images are countered by the strength in Leda that Yeats implies toward the end of the poem. At first, Yeats allows readers to see Leda's weakness through the images he presents of her struggling in the swan's — or Zeus's — grasp. Readers can imagine the large, robust swan towering over Leda, his "great wings beating still," as the "staggering girl," or Leda, lies "helpless" (Yeats 1, 2, 3). Through these images, the reader assumes that the swan, or male figure — as he is both the incarnation of Zeus and the male sexual partner — has more power than Leda. Despite the fact that swans are typically creatures associated with beauty, romance, and femininity, Yeats paints this swan as far more powerful than Leda, or perhaps all women. Yeats calls the swan "the feathered glory," and wonders how Leda's weak body can "but feel the strange heart beating where it lies" (6, 8).

The images of the weak human, described only as "body" lying entangled with the glorious and divine white strength of the swan, suggest a conquering — just like that of Agamemnon, whom Yeats recalls as dead (11). Thus, at the beginning of the poem, Yeats certainly suggests Leda's weakness and thereby implies the weakness of women as a theme. Furthermore, these first passages paint her as conquered through sexual intercourse, presenting the swan, or male, as the conqueror and the female as the conquered, thereby reinforcing typical gender roles and stereotypes. This image is furthered by Yeats' suggestion that Leda has been "mastered" by the swan (13). He even calls the swan "the brute blood of the air," suggesting the image of a cruel and violent creature who has violently raped Leda. In the beginning of the poem, then, Yeats uses imagery to suggest that women are weak and sexually passive. Through the images Yeats deploys, he corroborates the interpretation of the act as rape — a reading that some versions of the Greek myth support.

From Passivity to Power: Leda's Transformation

Although Yeats presents these images at first, his depictions of Leda begin to change as readers move through the poem. In the third stanza, the reader is confronted not only with images of Greek mythology but also with "a shudder in the loins" that "engenders" — that is, births — these mythical Greek catastrophes (Yeats 9–11). The reader is confronted with the image of an orgasm and conception, and the might and power born from that conception: the "broken wall," the "burning roof and tower," and Agamemnon's death (10). Through this image, Leda is seen as powerful. Readers can almost imagine her rising above the swan that had so brutally conquered her before. The imagery suggests that she is powerful enough not only to cause such great disasters but to do so through her orgasm — through her own sexual assertiveness.

In the second half of the poem, then, Yeats presents imagery that describes Leda in a far different fashion than the imagery at the beginning. Where she was once the weak, helpless prey of a mighty swan — frail in both self-determination and sexuality — she is now powerful in both regards. Because of this contrast, the previous images that suggest her weakness at the hands of the swan only serve to solidify her ultimate strength. As mighty as the swan was, and as weak as she appeared during the sexual act, she is now able to overcome those extreme power dynamics and emerge triumphant. Yeats' weak early images of Leda are therefore counteracted by the powerful images toward the end of the poem. Once this becomes clear, readers can even reinterpret the earlier images — once read as straightforwardly suggesting Leda's weakness — as foreshadowing her ultimate strength. By portraying Leda as both strong and sexually assertive, Yeats suggests that the typical interpretation of this Greek myth, which emphasizes the weakness of women through Leda's rape, is incomplete. Instead, he puts forth a theme of women's strength through his use of these powerful, contradictory images.

Conclusion: Reversing the Myth's Gender Hierarchy

Yeats' poem "Leda and the Swan" can certainly be read as a retelling of the classic Greek myth recounting the woman's union with Zeus in the form of the swan. A closer reading of the poem, however, suggests that it has far greater ambitions. While the events of the poem are the same as those contained in the myth, Yeats shows his brilliance by using three poetic techniques — imagery, word choice, and structure — to suggest a completely new theme. That theme runs contrary to most interpretations of the classic Greek tale. Instead of presenting women as weak and sexually passive, Yeats suggests that women are both strong and sexually assertive.

At first glance, readers might interpret this theme as Yeats' critique of sexism, but a more careful reading reveals several sexist assumptions on the part of Yeats nonetheless. For instance, he seems to imply that men are inherently strong and sexually assertive, while women must work to acquire this strength. Further review and interpretation regarding the motivations behind Yeats' themes is warranted, but understanding how Yeats' retelling reversed the implications of the Greek myth remains a productive point for literary discussion and debate.

Works Cited

Yeats, William Butler. "Leda and the Swan." The Literature Network. Online-literature.com.