Icarus Essay

540 Words3 Pages
Taylor A. Strande Mr. Passler Acc. English 10 27 Janurary 2012 Allusion to Icarus Allusion to Icarus Context: The Allusion to Icarus is referenced to in the book Fahrenheit 451, on page 113 when the firemen arrive a Montag’s house and are instructed to burn it. Category: Mythological Quotation from Fahrenheit 451: “Old Montag wanted to fly near the sun and now that he’s burnt his damn wings, he wonders why.” (113) In Greek mythology, the man known as Icarus is the offspring of the “master Athenian craftsman” Daedalus. Icarus and his father fell under the wrath of Minos, which was blaming Deadalus for his precious daughter’s death. Minos condemns Deadalus and Icarus to a Labyrinth. Being the master craftsman that Deadalus was he constructs a pair of wings out of wax and feathers, for both him and his son Icarus to escape from Labyrinth. After constructing the wings and giving them to Icarus he warns him: to not fly too close towards the sun, because the wax would melt on the wings, and send Icarus into the ocean where he would drown. Not listening to his father, Icarus flew too close to the sun, the wax melted and he fell to his horrible drowning death in the ocean. In the novel Fahrenheit 451 Montag and Icarus are similar in the sense that they both undermine the advice of others and they undermine the law. “Well, now you did it. Old Montag wanted to fly near the sun and now that he’s burnt his damn wings, he wonders why.” Bradbury (113) This quotation shows how Montag, like Icarus has “flew too near to the sun” or has tested the limits of the law and has “burnt his damn wings” or gotten caught. Montag’s curiosity of books and lac of abiding by the law, had led him to the trouble he is facing here at this point in the story, just like Icarus’s curiosity of the sun had led him to the danger of his death. Montag undermines the advice of others just as
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