Contexts: Art and Sculpture of Leda and the Swan

Pictured: Leonardo Da Vinci's "Leda and the Swan"

Although this depiction of seduction by the swan-Zeus has historically been the most popular among artists and writers, and was most likely one of the main influences on Yeats' interpretation, the two renditions of the same story vary widely. Here, Leda and the swan appear to be lovers, the woman embracing him fondly while he is graced with a garland of flowers around his neck. The gazes fondly at the woman while Leda gazes fondly at her four begotten children from the two eggs, and it is interesting that her husband (father of two of the children) is not present at this birth.

The openness of the landscape seems to imply a sense of freedom and contentment. However, the heavily weighted right of the painting containing the swan is both dark and crowded. This could imply that Leda is in control of Zeus, at least in this moment, and her apparent embrace may be interpreted as a stronghold on the swan, keeping him in place. Conversely, the swan seems to loom above and behind Leda in the shadow, perhaps whispering in her ear, not unlike the proverbial Snake and Eve. This may let on to a more subtle sinister undertone, a literal dark side to the myth. Perhaps it is this that Yeats is choosing to acknowledge in his comparatively explicit interpretation of the same myth.

Pictured: Michelangelo's "Leda and the Swan"

This is another very popular visual adaptation of the Leda myth, though its aim is somewhat different from Leonardo Da Vinci's. Here, the focus is on the act of sexual intercourse as opposed to the previous, which focuses on the aftermath of the event and the birth of Leda's four children. The image is very intimate and holds very little hint at any disturbance in Leda's affections. However, her lack of expression may reveal something akin to acceptance more than affection, or even, given the swan's true identity as Zeus, some type of hypnosis or forced acceptance. There is certainly no violence here--no "terrified vague fingers", no "nape caught in his bill"

; this is merely an act of copulation between woman and swan, which was considered far more acceptable than depicting a woman and a man. There is, however, "her thighs caressed / By the dark webs" of the swans feet and tail feathers. Yeats may have also taken in the subtleties of such a coupling, noting the intent of pressing "dark webs" against her thighs combined with the seeming love as their lips touch, lying breast to breast.