Project Allusion(Final Exam Grade)

MythologyMr. Rucker

Third Trimester, Senior Year

Assignment Basics• Pick a character or story from Greek/Roman mythology

that has not been extensively covered in our course.• Research the character/story and allusions from

various aspects of pop culture etc.• Compile a Power Point with information and images to

present to the class.• Power Point MUST cover specific types of allusions and

contain specified explanations.• The Power Point and your presentation will count as

your final exam grade in this course.• Presentations will be given on Monday, June 22 and

the scheduled final exam day. Sign up sheets TBA.

Required Contents• Title slide with an image to introduce your chosen topic• An ending slide listing all sources (information and images) in MLA format• At least one slide devoted to providing background information as if for an

audience unfamiliar with Greek mythology• At least one specific example of song lyrics that include a meaningful

allusion along with a short explanation of what it adds to the song• At least one image (with explanation) from each of the following:

– Movie – Painting– Advertisement and/or Company Logo – Related Word(s)– Other

• ADVANCED work demonstrates in depth understanding through more thorough explanations, more allusions, etc.

THE SIRENSBackground to the Myth

Their Origin and Creation• Persephone’s companions• Demeter gave them wings

to search for Persephone.• Gave up and inhabited

rocky islands• Their song (calls for P.) lures

in sailors who then end up shipwrecked and eaten.

• Half-bird/Half-woman OR Half-fish/Half-woman

• Usually 3 but could be 2-5

Background ContinuedMost famous story: from Homer’s The Odyssey

• In this section of The Odyssey, the hero, Odysseus, has been warned about the Sirens’ song. He is determined to hear their voices without falling into their trap, so he has his men tie him to the ship’s mast. The men then fill their ears with wax so they do not hear the alluring, but deadly, music. Odysseus struggles to get free and heed the Sirens’ call, but the ship moves on, and he remains safe, thus making him one of the few men to have heard the song and lived to tell the tale.

Allusions in Art

• Odysseus and the Sirens by John William Waterhouse (1891) illustrates the famous scene although he uses the bird woman format and increases the number of sirens to seven. He captures their menacing nature while preserving some sort of apparent innocence. One siren even perches next to an oarsman and sings in his wax-sealed ear.

Allusions in Art Continued• This is another Waterhouse

painting (1900) depicting a Siren; however, this time the artist has increased the sexuality by making her almost entirely human except for the hint of scales on her lower leg. The apparent tenderness between the two figures contrasts with the sharp rocks in the composition and the viewer’s knowledge of what the shipwrecked man is getting into.

Allusions in Art Continued

Statue in Warsaw, Poland• This public statue combines

strength and mystery by enhancing the physical dominance (even more so given the sword) in her upper body and separating her tail into two leg-like tail fins. However, the idea of alluring song is lost along with all sense of delicacy.

Allusions in Music• Heather Nova’s and Roxy

Music’s CD’s Siren• Both covers

demonstrate the combination of attraction and danger associated with the Sirens.

• Lyrics: “There, There” by Radiohead

• there's always a sirensinging you to shipwreck.(don't reach out, don't reach out)steer away from these rocks we'd be a walking disaster.(don't reach out, don't reach out)

• This song is about the hazards and vulnerability involved in relationships, or, more accurately, in following through on attraction. The singer compares acting on attraction to the fatal pursuit of a Siren’s song. He even goes so far as to say attraction is everywhere and is a false impression that should be ignored or disaster will ensue.

• Others including songs by Erasure, New Order, Nightwish, and Savatage

Allusions in MoviesOh Brother, Where art Thou? By the Coen brothers (2000) is a retelling of Homer’s The Odyssey with Odysseus trasformed into an escaped convict trying to regain his pre-arrest life. Various encounters on the way echo characters and events in the epic poem, including a run in with the Sirens.

Sirens by John Duigan (1994) focuses on the powers of temptation and sensuality.

Advertisements and Companies

The Sacramento Sirens Starbucks Coffee

Advertisements and Companies Continued

Starbucks Coffee• Although the use of a Siren

as a logo for a coffee company may at first seem unrelated, it could be that customers of the global chain are “heeding the call of the Sirens” when they line up for their caffeine.

• In any case, the logo has an interesting history.

History of the Starbucks Logo

Other Allusions• Comics: The Titans, Siryn

• Terry Brooks’ Shannara books• Video Games: Final Fantasy, Star Control, etc.• TV Shows: Red Dwarf, Charmed, Batman

Related WordsSiren (n) 1. stationary warning device: a warning device that produces a loud wailing sound when a current of compressed air or steam is forced through a rotating perforated disk2. portable warning device: an electronic warning device, often mounted or placed on a moving vehicle, that produces a loud wailing sound

Siren song or siren call (n)• dangerous appeal: an

alluring appeal, possessed by something or made by somebody, that has the power to tempt people, though yielding to the

temptation may have unfortunate effects

Related Words Continued

siren (n)• offensive term: an offensive

term for a woman whose sexual attractiveness is considered dangerous

• sirenian (n)• a herbivorous placental sea

mammal that has forelimbs like paddles, no hind limbs, and a broad flat tail

siren suit (n)• one-piece garment: a long-

sleeved one-piece garment that covers the whole body in the manner of coveralls

Works Cited

Use MLA format to list all of the sources used to create your Power Point. This includes the sites where you found images!