Tag Archives: femininity

The Life of a Siren

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The usage of mermaids in media, specifically in song writing and visuals, emphasizes this allegory between them and women grappling with their relationships, good or bad. In Taylor Swift’s new music video, The Fate of Ophelia, she utilizes mermaid visuals at one point in order to reflect this siren-like beckoning that love often brings, only to be met by betrayal. However, in recognizing the incredibly particular details of her portrayal of them, it creates the antithesis of the narrative that sirens solely act as villains of the a man’s story, existing to lure and deceive; rather, she chooses to recognize them as these elusive, but real and necessary, sentient characters with their own story to represent.

The song itself, from the title alone, reflects deep connections to literature. Taylor reflects on the story of Ophelia from Shakespearean literature, a character who was driven mad  by the men around her and her lack of value to them as a human being to the point that she drowned herself, Within the music video, she creates multiple textually based worlds to continuously relate this concept throughout storytelling of various women. At one minute and fifty-one seconds, four mermaids appear at the bottom of a pirate ship visual, indicating the first of many direct correlations to mermaid literature. 

Their appearance comes in as the lyrics “And if you’d never called for me” (Swift, 1:51-1:54) are sung, sparking this stereotypical connection to sirens. In most stories, their fate lies in luring men from safety, down dark and treacherous paths into the sea and inevitably, to their deaths. Them resting in the water, at the bottom near the plank she’s eventually forced to walk off the ship additionally reinforces this narrative of how mermaid-esque creatures seem to drag them into danger. This translates into women and love, as sirens often represent the parts of women that make them so desirable externally, and simultaneously, their internal softness. Even if it seems willing, surroundings seem to coerce the gentleness of women into giving in, knowing how it only brings ruin to their most vulnerable selves. This association of entrapment to mermaids and sirens, combined with escalating visuals of fighting between the pirates and Swift’s character in that moment, all points to this overwhelming theme that women are doomed in love, as are men lured by sirens. No real joy can find them as long as they are haunted by this narrative, as long as they are always seen this way. 

However, she spins the narrative in order to reflect the reality, that this love she’s referring to, that real and genuine love truly proves the opposite of all of these expectations previously written out for women. The sirens never instigate harm; in fact, they never reach for her at all, or anyone for that matter. It really reflects sirens and their connection to women as defenders, rather than seeking to draw them in the way they do with men. They aim to protect here, to act as this shield from falling into deceitful love once again. At the same time, the lyric continues to say “I might’ve lingered in purgatory”(1:55-1:58), referring to this despondence felt in that post-relationship state. In nearly every telling of sirens, their seeking out of a human being destroys the mortal’s life; the minute they choose to “fall”, they become stuck in this situation and oftentimes, never escape their ultimate fate of death. Referencing this saving, this ability to escape, shifts their alignment to be that of a positive ideal, that sirens existence does not automatically mean everything to follow will crumble. It brings them again as a figure of admiration for women, as a sense of security to their innermost selves. If anything, it juxtaposes typicality of love in the means of a couple; their individual existence, that whole and real love coming from them, saves human beings, namely women, from this unfortunate fate. 

These antitheses only seem to escalate when recognizing even the most minute details of lyric choice. In the previous verse, the same line ends in “I might’ve drowned in the melancholy” (Swift, 0:39-0:42). The usage of drown to a visual completely unrelated to sirens, and linger when they are present furthers this intention to alter the beliefs surrounding siren nature, and thereby love. Keeping them entirely separate from these visuals of death with the water emphasizes them as non-harmful aquatic beings; their existence does not automatically mean death by drowning, rather an eventually peaceful and hopeful resurfacing to ease. Love’s existence, women being engulfed in it does not equate to an immediately crushing demise, but a soft and easy landing into this fate of finding more. 

Imagery that affiliates itself with sirens comes into play once more in her lyricism, as she describes how love wraps around her “like a chain, a crown, a vine, pulling me into the fire” (2:00-2:07). It almost acts as a recall to this association of entrapment and fire’s correlation with eventual destruction. Again though, this wrapping visualizes how these sirens are seen as something enclosing and withholding, when it lies in the eyes of those witnessing and experiencing. This surrounding becomes a positive thing, the way sirens act as this kindness to women by shielding them. In the same sense, this encasing nature that’s referenced in the lyrics becomes actualized in the way that this all-consuming love seems to act as a force-field, as this barrier between happiness and hopelessness. It encompasses as a protection and finalizes the place of sirens as the image of safety, of how love’s all-consuming nature only aids it in its forcefield like state.

While all of the messaging points to this idea of love, of romance, it really fleshes itself out in the overall messaging behind Swift’s entire era. The Life of a Showgirl depicts this need to perform, as a celebrity, as a musician, and above it all, as a woman. Every visual within the music video references this showgirl like quality of womanhood, a constant need to be acting put together and impressing. Sirens and mermaids alike feel like one of the oldest representations of this feminine need to perform, to act in order to have their presence validated and valued. From stories like Undine to shield the ugly, or the Little Mermaid giving herself up entirely, women sacrifice and reshape themselves all for the love they think Swift pushes. This love she refers to really means within us; the woman’s need to wholeheartedly accept who she is, to accept the dirty siren that is so constantly demonized because, at her heart, she is good. This constant rejection of who truly lies underneath the “human” half must end; we must find acceptance of our whole mermaids in order to save ourselves from that treacherous “Fate of Ophelia”. 

Femininity Through the Male Lens

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Women have always struggled with living in a patriarchal world, constantly being told what to do and how to live. In “The Revenge of the Faery Melusine”, André LeBey uses the character of Raymondin in his distressed ascent to Melusine to highlight how femininity is adjusted through the male gaze of mistrust and domination. Raymondin’s suspicion exposes how male imagination defines a woman’s reality rather than through female actions. These thoughts in Raymondin’s head portray the patriarchal impulse to see female freedom as wrongdoing, inevitably forcing women, like Melusine, to live within a narrative constructed from male fear over veracity. 

From the moment they got married, Raymondin and Melusine had agreed on one thing: that Raymondin must never disturb her on Saturday nights. This agreement lasted many years, until Raymondin’s imagination got the best of him. LeBey states that as Raymondin was making his way up the steps to Melusine, he thought to himself, “He climbed quickly in his eagerness to strike, his heart pumping…there where he had never been before. Neither he, nor anyone, except her—and—who else? He believed there must be someone, but without entirely believing it” (Lebey 121). The language LeBey uses in this passage portrays Raymondin’s fears and imagination that led him to break his promise with Melusine. The use of his “eagerness to strike” and “his heart pumping” presents the notion of desire and hostility that Raymondin is experiencing. This wording is significant to the storyline because of how it portrays his relationship with Melusine, the fusion of rage and love. It portrays Raymondin as an intruder of Melusine’s precious space by expressing his actions as a “strike”. His motivation at this moment is jealousy rather than love; he no longer wants to understand Melusine but to conquer her. This, as a result, displays Raymondin’s desire to control a mystery that intimidates and threatens his masculinity. Not knowing this one aspect of Melusine’s life creates a more significant issue for his identity because she is choosing her own space over him.

LeBey’s language provides a deeper context for Raymondin’s toxic masculinity towards Melusine and her female freedom. When it’s stated that he was making his way to a place “where he had never been before. Neither he, nor anyone” (LeBey 121), it enhances the idea that Melusine has a space that has been untouched by the male presence. A space that gives her independence from Raymondin. This independence is the exact reason Raymondin feels he must defy it, furthering the idea that Melusine is forced to live in a male narrative created out of fear and jealousy. This furthers the thoughts that he had while scaling the stairs to Melusine. 

As Raymondin thinks, “her—and—who else? He believed there must be someone” (LeBey 121), it materializes from nothing but his own imagination, furthering his own insecurities. By providing the context of using his own imagination, LeBey can show how patriarchal narratives are created. Not by how women inherently act, but by how the men in their lives interpret female actions, based on their own imagination and free will. This assumption stems from the patriarchal idea that women hold secrets that are incomprehensible to their male counterparts. Secrets which Raymondin feels entitled to know at this moment in time. Without thinking about how Melusine might feel about his intrusion or “strike” into her female space. This loss of common sense is shown when Raymondin thinks, “He believed there must be someone, but without entirely believing it” (LeBey 121). Highlighting the aspect of suspicion without confirmation, further forcing this narrative he has created onto Melusine. This exposes the idea that Raymondin feels that he knows his wife, but has been so corrupted by the patriarchal gaze of control and mistrust. By picturing Melusine as an unfaithful wife, he can keep her in a story that he is ultimately controlling.

Overall, LeBey’s language in describing Raymondin’s inner thoughts in this passage highlights the male-created narrative Melusine has been forced to live in during her marriage. It’s important to note how this use of language exposes how Raymondin’s want to “strike” stems from this narrative he has created in his mind to control Melusine. Through the relationship and mistrust of Raymondin and Melusine, LeBey can critique the unsteady male authoritative foundation that makes it so easy for uncertainty to mutate into allegation. This passage sheds light on the concept of how female narratives stem from the male fear. Ultimately proving how patriarchal narratives are built to control the lives of the women they are forced onto. 

The Male Narrative of Femininity: Week 5

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After doing this weeks reading something I wanted to take a deep dive into was from chapter 14, “Betrayal”. Specifically where the story states, “He climbed quickly in his eagerness to strike, his heart pumping…there where he had never been before. Neither he, no anyone, except her—and—who else? He believed there must be someone, but without entirely believing it” (Lebey 121). What I thought was interesting was the fact that Raymondin’s first thought about his wife asking to not be bothered in this one day alone, was that she was cheating on him. The dramatics of this scene also show the emotional drama Raymondin is experiencing, which highlights his fear of what Melusine might be doing in that room. The fear and passion that might typically be expressed when a man is met with a woman who is resisting containment. Melusine asking for a moment of solitude, a moment where Raymondin can not control her or have contact with her. Even though her reasoning is because of her snake like form, it still highlights the ruin of femininity from a man/husband figure.

Melusine’s mermaid form embodies lust and danger, the feminism aspect of both life and death. This quote highlights the how women are forced to live within a narrative created by make doubts. How Raymondin only thought she was hiding another lover in the room shows just that. The use of saying that Raymondin believed she was cheating “without entirely believing it” shows the internal battle he is facing. One idea of women through the narrative that has been created by men for many decades and the other being his personal connection and portrayal of Melusine as his wife and lover. Her secret and her identity are being invaded by the failure to live in a narrative built against her in the first place.

I also like the idea that both Raymondin and Melusine were betrayed in this chapter. Melusine in the way that Raymondin broke his promise to her, amd Raymondin in the way that Melusine “lied” to him about her true identity. Seeing how in this quote Raymondin felt betrayed by Melusine, showing the male created narrative women are forced to live in. I liked this quote because of how it highlights how society is out to take away Melusine’s femininity and identity because she doesn’t fit the narrative. Raymondin’s emotions in this quote show how he feels all of his troubles are because of Melusine.

Song of the Week- Bellhart by Christopher Larkin (I liked the drama this song added to the story!)

Humanity in Femininity

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Melusine’s story reflects so much of life from its introduction: discussions of the fluid nature of opposing concepts, patriarchal structures and their implementation within relationships, and of course, the need to hide deep secrets from those we love in order to protect ourselves. This then spills over into one of the most realistic parts of the story in my opinion: the use of mermaids as a vessel for fate, and how that plays a role in romantic ideology for women.

Emotionally, it’s made incredibly apparent how his betrayal of her boundaries, a concept all too well fated to modern societies and relationships, becomes a point of vulnerability for her. The moment her image of their love seems to unravel, she crumbles: “the fate that was now imposed on her, she felt everything uncertain, herself, her future, as if her heart was breaking, and she fell to the ground as if she were dead” (Lebey, 140). Emphasis on fate, how this was inevitable, begins this narrative of how love stories are considered written as a part of our lives. Life as we know it in the 21st century often means marriage, the nuclear family; it is destined regardless of women’s desires for their future. In Melusine’s, her one explicit desire only lies in being loved, and seen as more than the curse she’s been fated to. She truly represents how destiny plays a role in women’s reality, how escaping the circumstances placed upon them is something they so deeply crave, and that is often found in love in literature. His respect of her boundaries for so long implied reality in these desires finally being fulfilled, in this escape of her unfortunate through the power of a soul-crushing love that’s so often depicted to women, making his betrayal so impactful.

Seeing it from a holistic perspective, it’s apparent how being betrayed by someone she loved shatters her world view beyond love. It resonates deeply with those who’ve experienced that first major love heartbreak, to consume yourself so completely within another human being only to be so earth shatteringly devastated at their disappearance, and faced with the reality that you and this other are not intertwined forever. Mermaids being seen as these powerful and divine creatures that build upon womanhood’s principles, only for Melusina to become so distraught by the loss of a man shows how integrally incorporated love becomes as a part of womanhood. Despite being a figure of supposed vanity, and caught in a moment of “narcissism”, his betrayal wrecks her so deeply, it feels like a death of such a major piece of her. It humanizes her, equating the way so many girls and women react to losing a partner they invest themselves within to her, as well as paints how in a patriarchal society, natural state, hers being a mermaid, ties women to the inevitability of whatever their situation may be.

Merfolk: A Sign of Misfortune or Beacons of Hope?

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Traveling back to a time where the only form of communication was through word of mouth and written forms/letters, it seems almost impossible not to have any historical accounts of mythological creatures such as dragons, unicorns, and cyclopes. However, one mythical creature that catches most peoples attention and continues to trend in various forms of media and art itself is none other than the mermaid.

There are many reasons as to why this specific creature (mermaid) is arguably the most popular one out of all of the other ones and after reading Merpeople: A Human History by Vaughn Scribner, one of the many reasons that stood out to me which I never really took into consideration was the fact that the mermaid/man is a combination of an animal and a human. This hybrid characteristic something that although may seem tame in the world of myths due to the fact that there are many other creatures that are more otherworldly and supernatural (e.g. Phoenix, Wyvern, Cerberus, etc.) while simultaneously having features from actual animals, it still goes back to the hybrid characteristic of merpeople that makes that specific creature so interesting and compelling.

Further understanding of merpeople makes one truly appreciate the complexity of their origin and initial perception which is symbolic in religion, “..these half-women, half-fish served as ideal symbols of wonder and danger for Church leaders” (Scribner). With more information being showcased in this section of the reading, one begins to realize just how different the media has portrayed merpeople – more specifically mermaids – in a wondrous light with an actual functioning society and hierarchy when in reality, the early depictions of mermaids were shown to, in a way, criticize lust and sexuality in a manner that would leave the viewer shocked and repulsed due to the lack of clothing and complete fish form below the waist. While the theological portrayal of the mermaid is associated with lust and the danger of said feeling, one would have to also take into account the historical background of the mermaid through the lenses of sailors, and as the rise of explorers became a huge contribution to the reports of these mythological creatures, it also makes one wonder whether the “sightings” were either just completely fabricated or a misinterpretation of an actual marine organism for a mermaid.

As one continues to research the subject of mermaids and just how common it was to encounter one throughout the Nineteenth Century, it almost makes one ponder about the legitimacy of these accounts, and when one begins to question said accounts, one piece of information that is important to mention is that the ocean is so vast and so diverse. Although this fact is obvious, it does beg the question, why is the concept of merpeople included in the “fantasy” category? This is not to say that such a creature exists, but after completing the reading, the concept of the mermaid does not seem completely absurd especially after viewing various different marine organisms that do seem fictional like the colossal squid.

With the many different interpretations of merpeople existing throughout the years, there really is no true answer to whether they are a sign of good luck or meant to serve as a cautionary tale. However, I view the mermaid as a misunderstood being; a creature that is not accepted on land nor in the sea which is entirely relatable if one is in a transitional phase in their lives. Although this is just the introduction to merpeople, I am already intrigued and hoping to expand my knowledge on the correlation between merpeople and the environment.

Mermaids: Monsters and Women

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The classification of mermaids as monsters rather than mythological creatures has a lot to do with variation in perception of women. The introduction discusses the existence of all hybrid creatures in ancient literature as being seen as both cautionary and also exciting. When it comes to creatures like unicorns, their fantastical existence made them a staple for children, versus centaurs seen as freaks of nature for their unnatural mesh between human and horse. Horses natural undesirability as animals made them something humans would never want to be associated with, versus unicorns being entirely one species with these concepts understood as beautiful attached to them.

The human half of mermaids reflects the almost selfish view people tend to have; if it’s not happening to us, we cannot begin to understand it. When we don’t understand, it arises fear and these representations become “monsters” because of their inability to relate to the experiences that only our brain actualizes. Their non-human existence and how its impacted by the environment becomes imminent for us to be able to place ourselves in the aquatic world, in the real world that fish and other animals suffer in as a result of the incredible issues facing the ocean as climate change worsens.

In the same light as centaurs and unicorns, but alternate views, mermaids original beginning as mermen allowed them much more freedom to be seen as powerful and forces of nature. Following that, artistic interpretations skewed the eventual Greek creation of mermaids as Triton’s wife became more of an additive than a standalone character, and made mermaids a reflection of these sexualized ideals of women. Religion then utilizing these characters to squash any of humanity’s belief in femininity’s benefit, painting them as lustful creatures who intended to bring humanity’s destruction, thereby added to the mountain of rhetoric against womanhood.

Their eventual sexualization additionally has to do with this societal perception when it comes to women, and how femininity immediately signifies a difference in the subject at hand. Going from mermen that focused on anything but their beauty and stories of Triton to women seducing men and glorious creatures trivialized them to the standards women must comply to . It creates the conclusion that regardless of being seen as monsters, they will always be considered women above it, and that’s their actual issue.