According to the Academy of American Poets, Margaret Atwood was born in Ottawa, Ontario, in 1939. Margaret had both a bachelor's degree from Victoria College, University of Toronto, and a Master's degree from Harvard. Atwood is the author of more than fifteen books of poetry that have been translated into multiple languages ​​and published in over twenty-five countries. Margaret has also received numerous awards for her work and was even named Ms. Magazine's Woman of the Year in 1986. Atwood has taught at many universities and today resides in Toronto (Academy). Among his works is a poem entitled Orpheus, a poem that alludes to the myth of Orpheus. Atwood writes the poem from the female point of view to convey Orpheus' feelings of manipulation and selfish needs. In both the myth and the poem the male character is manipulative and masks his selfish needs as love for the female character. According to classical versions of the myth, Orpheus loses his wife and ruins his attempt to bring her back. “The bride, newly married, met death / trampled on a serpent; the viper sank its teeth into her ankle” (QUOTE). When Eurydice is bitten by a snake and dies, Orpheus undertakes the journey to Hades to retrieve her. “The poet dared to cross the door of Tenaro, to look for his wife among the Shadows delivered to the Styx” (QUOTE). His actions may seem like love but in reality they represent his desire to control her: without her he lacks power and control. Orpheus knows that with his voice he can manipulate anyone and anything, “Then Orpheus plucked his lyre while he sang”: he uses this ability in Hades to convince the gods to free her (QUOTE). Orpheus fails to bring his wife back to life. Although his manipulation skills worked, "Moved by... middle of paper... his opinions and desires, that's why he feels he can manipulate and control her. Margaret Atwood's poem uses the poem about an unhappy couple to allude to the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice. The myth Orpheus controls and manipulates everyone, including Eurydice. In the poem, the male character controls and manipulates his lover. The common thread in these two works is that Orpheus and the man in the poem play the role of the controlling husband who takes advantage of his weak and submissive wife. Works Cited Mandelbaum, Allen, comp. Ovid's Metamorphoses , Margaret. “Orpheus (1)”. Academy of American Poets”. Orpheus (1)”. .php/prmPID/746