Siren Song

In August of 1960, the Canadian House of Commons unanimously passed the “Act for the Recognition and Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms”—a bill of rights guaranteeing freedoms regardless of race, national or regional origin, color, religion, or sex. In 1974, the year Margaret Atwood’s collection, You Are Happy, and the poem “Siren Song” were published, the Canadian Supreme Court drew controversy for a case ruling which many considered to be in opposition to this bill. The ruling held that a Native Canadian woman who married a white man would lose her Native Canadian status, but a Native Canadian man who married a white woman not only maintained his Native status, his wife would also be considered Native Canadian. Greater public and political attention on the lack of civil rights—particularly for people of color and women—eventually led to more comprehensive protections via the Charter of Rights and Freedoms in 1982.

Throughout the 1970s, increased tensions between French-speaking Canadians (who made up about 25% of the population) and Anglophones caused considerable unrest. In 1971, French was declared the official language of Quebec, easing some of the intensity of cultural separatism. Difficulties between the federal government of Canada and Quebec arose again with the development of the James Bay Project by Hydro-Quebec. Since its inception, the project faced opposition from regional Cree and Inuit communities as well as environmentalist communities for its perceived threat to ecosystems for birds, freshwater seals, Beluga whales, and other animals. Ongoing lawsuits attest to the challenges of communication between opposing parties.

In the context of the times, “Siren Song” speaks to a scenario in which the pernicious nature of traditional and culturally enforced gender roles force people to play out a tired story—a tale wherein a woman is inherently without power and helpless until she “captures” a man. In addition, “Siren Song” draws attention to the cyclical danger of misused or weaponized language, wherein a linguistic ruse can be repeatedly recycled to nefarious purpose, or to no real purpose sans inertia. While due process can eventually result in greater legal protections for all citizens, endless lawsuits and legalese can lull a system to its demise with its boring song.

Atwood’s work is considered feminist but she dodges the label. It’s significant to note that “Siren Song” uses no gender-specific pronouns (although it is “men” forced “to leap overboard” (Lines 4-5)). Because the sirens were bird-women or fish-women in myth, and the mariners they decimated were male, it is assumed that readers should read the poem with these gendered designations. The messages in the poem, however, leave space for a less binarized reading in which any perceived powerless entity can be both undercut by and exploitative of their powerlessness.