Michael Field’s “Caenis Caeneus”: Transmasculine Poetics at the Fin de Siècle

In 1900 Edith Cooper (one half of “Michael Field”) completed “Caenis Caeneus,” later published in the posthumous volume Dedicated (1914). The poem tells the story of the warrior Caeneus, who, according to various classical sources, is transformed from the maiden Caenis into the youth Caeneus by the sea god Poseidon. Cooper’s poem dwells on the joy and strength Caeneus discovers as he grows from boy to man, narrating his epic adventures until his death in battle and transformation into a bird, before becoming Caenis again in the underworld. Despite the suggestive gender transition at its heart and its focus on masculinity, the poem has been regarded primarily as a reflection on the restrictions of femininity. In this article, we consider the poem as a test site for considering trans masculinity at the fin de siècle, locating this within Michael Field’s engagement with the classical past, tracing trans ecologies through Caeneus’s response to the natural environment, and engaging with developing theories of trans poetics. Ultimately, we demonstrate the rich analytical frameworks that transgender studies offers to Michael Field studies and to Victorian literature more broadly.