The Speaker

The speaker of “Leda and the Swan” is an anonymous third person narrator who describes the scene as if witnessing it firsthand. At the same time, this speaker possesses knowledge of the fall of Troy which Zeus’s ejaculation “engenders” (9). However, the speaker’s concluding question suggests they are not perfectly omniscient. Even as this speaker is able to grasp the total historical meaning of the scene, they are left wondering whether Leda shared in this “knowledge” (13) as well.

Leda

Leda is a character derived from Greek mythology. She was said to have been raped by Zeus, who had taken the form of a swan to do so. This union sired Helen of Troy, who was said to later mobilize the Trojan War with her beauty. Leda was also the mother of Clytemnestra, the wife and murderer of King Agamemnon, whom the speaker alludes to in line...