Essay Questions

Describe the overt instinct that governs Sirena’s desires.

In terms of love instinct, Sirena covets human romance although she is a mermaid: “The surface of my entire body stings with anticipation. I am convinced by our song as the sailors must be. Oh, yes, there is a man on that ship who will be my love. Mine.” Sirena does not obscure her longing for human eroticism. Her apparent concession surmises that mermaids possess a Love instinct that is analogous to humans’.

Explain the irony of Cecilia’s murder.

Sirena narrates, “Cecilia’s head appears out of the water. ‘Help! Come quick!’ We dive after her, around the underwater hill. Immediately I recognize the octopus den from the pile of crab shells outside.my heart clutches as I guess. And I am right. The man’s hunger made him reckless. His spear lies broken on the sea bottom. The octopus has twined around him. The man doesn’t struggle. The octopus blushes in anger at our approach. He releases the body and curls into his den. We pull the body to the shore and let Cecilia drag it up on the beach while we swim back out and hover. Cecilia lens over the body .She wails softly. The other ten men are scattered here and there. One of them springs from behind a rock and runs towards Cecilia. He grabs her hair and pulls her onto the dirt where we rarely go. She cries out. Within moments the others have come. They slam rocks on her. They smash her head and ribs.”

Manifestly, the men assume that Cecilia is liable for the mate’s demise. However, Cecilia is a redeemer who endeavors to liberate the man from the octopus which is intent on eradicating him. The men have adverse preconceived views regarding the mermaids’ evilness which heartens them to assault her callously. Instead of acclaiming her for her humanness, they recompense her with ferocity. Furthermore, the men’s assault of Cecilia is ironic considering that she and other mermaids crave the adoration of human beings. The vehemence they mete out of Cecilia rules out the prospects of having romance that binds humans and mermaids. Additionally, it is ironic that mermaids display astonishing humaneness which outshines that of the factual human beings.