Icarus
Fly too High, Fly too Low, so Drowning He Will Go
In the Greek story of Daedalus and Icarus, Daedalus constructs wings for him and his son Icarus to escape from prison. Icarus is warned not to fly too low to the water, or too high to the sun, yet he disobeys his father and plunges to his death. Greeks used this story to simply advise their children to listen to their parents, but other implications from the story have varied in many artistic depictions and written works. Interestingly, the foremost message that painter Pieter Bruegel, poet W.H. Auden and poet Martin A. Ramos, maintain through their works is the idea that life goes on despite the distress of the fallen Icarus.
Primarily, Pieter Bruegel’s painting Landscape with the Fall of Icarus shows the people’s lack of concern for Icarus’ demise as they seem to continue on with their lives. At first sight of the painting, we can see a farmer persistently plowing a field. It seems as if he is so caught up in his work that he is inattentive to the small drowning boy in the corner. Although the tiny Icarus is thrashing in the water, he is also unseen by a boat whose sails appear to be fiercely caught by the wind. The boat is in close proximity to the dying boy, yet it is determined to quickly sail away from Icarus. Just as the boat is unmindful of the boy in peril, a shepherd is aimlessly staring off in the opposite direction. It is possible he is so deep in thought that he cannot be distracted. Similarly the fisherman in the painting is near Icarus, yet he continues only to focus on his fishing line. This suggests that he is too concerned with catching his next meal to even turn his head to notice Icarus helplessly flailing his legs in the water. Because Bruegel’s painting illustrates a wide range of characters with their backs turned away from the sinking Icarus, we can infer that the world focuses more on their daily activities than on the needs of a suffering boy.
W.H. Auden’s poem “Musee des Beaux Arts”
In the Greek story of Daedalus and Icarus, Daedalus constructs wings for him and his son Icarus to escape from prison. Icarus is warned not to fly too low to the water, or too high to the sun, yet he disobeys his father and plunges to his death. Greeks used this story to simply advise their children to listen to their parents, but other implications from the story have varied in many artistic depictions and written works. Interestingly, the foremost message that painter Pieter Bruegel, poet W.H. Auden and poet Martin A. Ramos, maintain through their works is the idea that life goes on despite the distress of the fallen Icarus.
Primarily, Pieter Bruegel’s painting Landscape with the Fall of Icarus shows the people’s lack of concern for Icarus’ demise as they seem to continue on with their lives. At first sight of the painting, we can see a farmer persistently plowing a field. It seems as if he is so caught up in his work that he is inattentive to the small drowning boy in the corner. Although the tiny Icarus is thrashing in the water, he is also unseen by a boat whose sails appear to be fiercely caught by the wind. The boat is in close proximity to the dying boy, yet it is determined to quickly sail away from Icarus. Just as the boat is unmindful of the boy in peril, a shepherd is aimlessly staring off in the opposite direction. It is possible he is so deep in thought that he cannot be distracted. Similarly the fisherman in the painting is near Icarus, yet he continues only to focus on his fishing line. This suggests that he is too concerned with catching his next meal to even turn his head to notice Icarus helplessly flailing his legs in the water. Because Bruegel’s painting illustrates a wide range of characters with their backs turned away from the sinking Icarus, we can infer that the world focuses more on their daily activities than on the needs of a suffering boy.
W.H. Auden’s poem “Musee des Beaux Arts”