Poetry and Love

Margaret Atwood's "Siren Song" is a tongue-in cheek love poem. The speaker frames herself as one of the mythical Sirens, and she deceives the reader into thinking they are learning the secret when in reality they are being lured like any other. The concept is clearly meant to be humorous especially with the absurd image of the "bird suit", but while the speaker's position as a predator may be meant simply as a joke, it betrays a cynical concept of love. Love here is no supernatural force, nor even pleasant; it is a simple game between predators trying to out deceive each other. The poem conveys that love is a selfish attempt to outmaneuver one's "opponent".

Robert Penn Warren's "True Love" communicates a very different concept of love. Faithful to its title, it tells of a time in the speaker's boyhood when he experienced "true love". Even in recollection, the speaker describes this girl as if first seeing her, clearly still infatuated at least with the memory. His question "How could I exist in the same world with that brightness?" evokes the awe that he felt and still feels in the presence of true beauty. In the end, though she moves away married to another man, the speaker feel glad to have seen her and hopes the best for her. He doesn't see his infatuation with her as a deliberate attempt by her to lure and deceive men. Even when he doesn't end up with her, he isn't "overboard" as Atwood's Siren's prey are; he is just happy for the experience. He sees true love as everlasting and unconditional because though he didn't really know her or understand her life, she was beautiful and she said his name once. That is all he needs.

Atwood's view of love is not unlike my brother Clay's. He sees love as some strange contest between him and whomever he is in a relationship with. That somehow it is a matter of deceiving someone into liking you. I think this is rather bleak and based on some self-deprecating concept that no one is worthy of love and must therefore deceive others to receive it. My concept is much like Warren's. I do believe that true love is out there though it often seems like sentimental garbage. Despite having never felt that true love myself, I can attest to that sort of love for people whom you will never really know but hope the best for. I only want that one day I might find it.