The next line carries with it an implication that Zeus’ victim is not in control, with the word “staggering” used to describe Leda’s movements, while the phrase “her thighs caressed” add an erotic dimension to what is soon to become a savage and brutal rape. One could go further and argue that the intentional eroticism of something so violent is somewhat sinister – after all, a caress is supposed to be an act of affection and love, and is not normally associated with something spiteful and violent.
A sense of the victim’s entrapment and entanglement is created in the next line, in which Yeats describes the swan’s wings as “dark webs” (the word “dark” is also used to portray the swan and its actions as sinister). This sense of entrapment is emphasised where the swan is said to have the nape of the victim’s neck “trapped in its bill”. The contrast in texture between the words “nape” and “caught” emphasise the power of the action. Yet, despite the brutality of Zeus’ initial action, the softness of the word “bill” implies that it is forceful, yet not overpowering.
The eroticism which occurred in the second line continues in the line “He holds her helpless breast upon his breast”. The softness of the words used, combined with the sexual connotations which they carry, lends the line an erotic tone, made sinister by the forceful nature of the animal’s actions.
The second stanza of the poem consists of two questions, both pondering on the nature of the victim’s actions, and on what is potentially her ambivalence. The first questions how the girl can allow herself to be submissive yet simultaneously put up a struggle – “How can those terrified vague fingers push The feathered glory from her loosening thighs?”. The description of her fingers as “terrified” implies that she is either scared of the rape itself or scared of the consequences (or both). However, they are also described as vague, which carries the connotation that she is ambivalent – as if she does not want to experience the rape itself, yet knows what the consequences are (one being the birth of a child) and therefore doubts the validity of her resistance to the act. Leda’s confused state of mind is re-emphasised by the fact that she “pushed the feathered glory” from her thighs, yet those thighs were “loosening” (i.e. she was being submissive) at the same time.
The second questions how the victim is able to realise how unnatural the events are – “And how can body, laid in that white rush, But feel the strange heart beating where it lies?”. The “white rush” could represent either the movement of semen during ejaculation, or the movements of the swan itself. The word “white” serves as a contradiction – how could something white, a colour which is supposed to represent purity and innocence, violate a young woman in such a brutal, senseless fashion? The use of the word “strange” to describe the swan’s heart carries the connotation that the organ itself, and therefore the swan’s intentions and feelings, are alien and unnatural. The fact that the poet questions why the victim was capable of realising the unnatural intentions of her attacker implies that she was aware of the consequences of the rape.
The stanza can also be read and interpreted on a more universal level. The “terrified vague fingers” in the first line could be perceived as groping towards knowledge; the fact that the girl uses her fingers and not her hands emphasising her unsureness. Furthermore, “that white rush” could be interpreted as being a rush towards fate, with the rape leading to the birth of Helen and Clytemnestra, eventually culminating in the fall of Troy and the murder of Agamemnon.
The theme of fate runs into the next stanza, and the parallel between it and the act of sexual intercourse continues further. The first line refers to “a shudder in the loins” which could be perceived as being orgasm or ejaculation, while the word “engenders” which follows it could be seen as referring to both the creation of new life (i.e. the births of Helen and Clytemnestra) and the causation of future events – the fall of Troy, the death of Agamemnon.
The next line continues to link intercourse/birth with fate. It refers to “the broken wall”, which represents the destruction of Troy but also the loss of Leda’s virginity, while “the burning of roof and tower” could refer to not only Troy, as mentioned above, but also to male genitalia.
Yeats draws the poem to a conclusion by posing a question to the reader – could Leda have known of the consequences of the rape? The last stanza begins by referring to, depending on how one interprets it, either her state of entrapment and being overwhelmed, or her knowledge that something is not right. The lines “Being so caught up, So mastered by the brute blood of the air” could imply either – the alliteration of the letter “b” combined with the harshness of “brute” and “blood” emphasise the brutality of Zeus’ actions and the horrific nature of the atmosphere.
The next line implies that Leda may have put up a struggle upon realising what the consequences of the attack will be. Yeats questions whether or not she “put on his knowledge with his power”, and this seems to affirm the idea that, while Leda was being in no way submissive (the line implies that she has already “put on” his power), the questions lies in why this was so. In the second stanza, Yeats portrays Leda as having put up a struggle, and in these final lines, he ponders on whether or not the reason for this was her potential awareness of what would happen if she submitted to Zeus. While Yeats clearly states his opinion that Leda did put up a struggle, he leaves it up to the reader to decide why this was so, by questioning Leda’s knowledge of the consequences of her rape.
Even in the final line of the poem, Yeats continues to paint an ugly portrait of Zeus. He describes the swan’s beak as “indifferent”, a word which carries the connotation that Zeus was uncaring and unflinching in what he did. Furthermore, the harshness of the word “beak” is used to again portray Zeus as cruel and barbaric.
It is clear from the poem that Leda was raped by Zeus, who had disguised himself as a swan. It is also clear from the poem that Leda felt ambivalent while being raped – she was unsure of whether to submit or resist. The implication near the end of the poem is that she did attempt to resist (although the “shudder in the loins” and the “white rush” convey the fact that she was raped), yet the question is why this was so. Yeats causes the reader to ponder on whether Leda’s fingers were “terrified” because of the act or because of her potential knowledge of the consequences, and he himself near the end of the poem ponders on whether she knew the consequences of the rape before it happened (“Did she put on his knowledge with his power…?”). Yeats speaks, on a literal level, about the rape of a young woman, yet he also relates the events of Greek mythology to themes of fate, giving the poem meaning and resonance on a more universal level.