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Difficulty: HardAllusion and Intertextuality

Read the following poem:

I draw the shuttle through the silent warp,
Not to delay the suitors at the sill,
Nor to preserve a hearth for one who drifts
Where sirens call and lesser currents pull.
The shroud I weave is not for Laertes’ limbs,
But for the memory of the sail we knew;
With every thread unspooled at dead of night,
I unbuild the myth of his returning tread.
Let Ithaca believe I count the hours;
This loom is not a tally of my grief,
But a quiet forge where I reshape the shore
To bar the wanderer from the gate he left.

Which of the following best describes the primary function of the speaker’s subversion of the classical myth of Penelope?

  1. A
    It suggests that the speaker is unable to escape her domestic duties and is ultimately resigned to Laertes' impending death.
  2. B
    It indicates that the speaker has been deceived by the suitors and is unwittingly assisting in the destruction of Ithaca's kingdom.
  3. It recontextualizes an act of traditional fidelity as a deliberate assertion of independence and rejection of the returning hero.Answer
  4. D
    It expresses the poet’s personal biographical grief over a modern voyage by comparing it to the classical dangers of the sirens' songs.
  5. E
    It catalogs various Homeric symbols—the loom, the shroud, and the sirens—to establish the historical setting of ancient Greece.

Answer

The primary function of the subversion is to recontextualize Penelope's traditional act of fidelity as a deliberate assertion of independence and a rejection of Odysseus's return.
The correct option is correct because the poem systematically refutes the traditional motives associated with Penelope's loom and shroud. By explicitly stating she is not delaying the suitors or preparing a shroud for Laertes, but rather weaving to 'unbuild the myth' and 'bar the wanderer,' the speaker redefines Penelope's actions from passive waiting to an active, sovereign choice to live independently of Odysseus.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the classical allusion used in the poem.
Identify that the loom, shroud, suitors, Laertes, Ithaca, and sirens are allusions to the story of Penelope waiting for Odysseus in Homer's Odyssey.
Establishing the literary source of the allusion is necessary to understand what is being referenced and how it is traditionally interpreted.
2
Examine how the speaker modifies or subverts the traditional meaning of these allusive elements.
Note that the speaker rejects the traditional motives for her weaving: she does not weave to delay suitors, preserve the hearth, or make a shroud for Laertes. Instead, she unweaves to 'unbuild the myth' of his return and 'bar the wanderer.'
This step reveals the contrast between the source material's theme of fidelity/longing and the poem's theme of rejection/autonomy.
3
Synthesize the subversion's impact on the poem's theme.
Conclude that the subversion transforms Penelope from a passive, waiting figure of loyalty into an active, self-determining agent who takes control of her own destiny by refusing the hero's return.
Connecting the device (allusion subversion) to the thematic meaning of the poem answers the question stem's demand.

Key Concept

Subversion of classical allusions to challenge traditional gender roles and develop themes of autonomy.
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Topics

Allusion and Intertextuality

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