The Myth Of Daedalus And Icarus

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Eng125-18 The Myth of Daedalus and Icarus The myth of Daedalus and Icarus is one of many classic Greek myths that not only tell an epic tale but also attempt to teach the reader a lesson. In the many works composed following the telling of this myth, the authors, artists, composers and poets honour Icarus and his father by telling of their relationship or of Icarus’ somewhat graceful fall. W.H. Auden’s ‘Musee des Beaux Arts’ is a perceptive observation of Pieter Brueghel’s ‘Landscape with the Fall of Icarus,’ pointing out the indifference of the men closest to the plunging winged boy. Is this a commentary on the modern day passiveness towards death and violence? That a boy should fall from the sky to his death for no one to notice, except for his own father, is certainly a kind of indifference. Wendy A. Shaffer, in comparison, questions if Icarus would have listened had Daedalus not spoken in the same tone used in his everyday chastisements. The theme of father and son has also brought about works depicting Daedalus’ reaction to his son’s death. Anne Sexton tells of Icarus plunging to his death “while his sensible daddy goes straight to town,” in her poem ‘To a Friend Whose Work has come to Triumph.’ In the myth Daedalus searches the ocean for his lost son. Maybe he feels guilty for being the maker of such faulty wings. Or perhaps he blames his son for not heeding his warnings, and really is callous in reactions. When reading variations of this myth, they almost speak to your own life’s experiences and lessons we have all learned. These authors explore the relationship between classical myth and contemporary life. ‘Landscape with the Fall of Icarus’ is one of the most well-known pieces of art related to the myth of Icarus, along with the Auden poem. In ‘Musee des Beaux Arts’ we are told how “everything turns away quite leisurely from the disaster” as if a
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