Icarus Essay

Mythology & Modern Poems Comparison/Contrast Essay: Icarus

Flight is a gift that everyone has dreamed of acquiring; however, what they do not know is that it is something that should not be taken lightly. The myth of Icarus demonstrates that even though Daedalus and his son were able to achieve flight, Daedalus ended up regretting it because of the sorrow that it left him. This myth may have inspired man’s dreams of being like a bird and taking flight into the vast blue skies. This myth inspired Edward Field to write “Icarus,” a short poem about an alternate ending after Icarus fell into the ocean. The Icarus myth and poem both share the same views of irony, but differ in their use of conflict and theme. The authors of the poem and the myth both share the same literary element of dramatic irony. Icarus' neighbors "never [dreamed] that the gray, respectable suit" Icarus wore "concealed arms that had [once] controlled huge wings" (Field). Icarus is hiding in plain sight among this new city, but no one there knows his identity. They consider him as one of them, and have no second thoughts about it.

Icarus attempts every night to "[construct] small wings and [try] to fly" to the ceiling to repair a light fixture, but every time he fails, he "hates himself for trying" (Ovid). Icarus is having an internal conflict with himself over flight. He wants to keep trying to fly once again, but he knows that he cannot so when he fails, he regrets trying to. Icarus disobeyed his father's warning when "his nearness to the devouring sun" caused the wax to soften "and the wax melted" (Ovid). Icarus could not stay away from the sun, so he went against the valuable advice and flew toward it. He is having a man vs. man conflict with his father when he does not heed his warnings. The author of the poem shows a man vs. self conflict while the author of the myth shows a man vs. man