DAEDALUS AND ICARUS

by: Nick Pontikis

Daedalus- his name means “skilled worker”- was a famous architect, inventor, and master craftsman known for
having created many objects that figure prominently in various myths. He had a beloved son named Icarus.

His homeland was Athens but his parentage is uncertain. Alcippe, Merope, and Iphinoe are all mentioned at
different times as being his mother. His father’s identity was never precisely established, but many claim that it was
Metion, son of Erectheus.

For a short time, his apprentice was his nephew Talos. They say that it was Talos, at the age of twelve, who
displayed a skill that nearly rivaled his mentor’s. Daedalus, fearing that the boy would surpass him in talent,
murdered the boy by tossing him from the Acropolis of Athens.

He was then tried at the Areiopagus, which was the ancient Greek court, and banished from his home city of
Athens. He fled to the island of Crete, where he began to work at the court of King Minos and Queen Pasiphae, in
the magnificent palace of Knossos.

It is said that Daedalus was the first to conceive masts and sails for ships for the navy of Minos, helping Crete
become a naval power. The statues he carved were so exquisite, they looked as if they were alive. It is said that they
would have escaped were it not for the chain that bound them to the palace wall.

Daedalus also constructed a wooden cow for the queen to hide in to satisfy her amorous longings for a white bull
sent by Poseidon.

When the dreadful Minotaur was born, Daedalus built the Labyrinth to contain the monstrous half-man, half-bull.
For years, Minos demanded a tribute of youths from Athens to feed the creature as punishment for the accidental
killing of his son while he was visiting Athens.

Eventually, the Athenian hero Theseus came to Crete to attempt to slay the Minotaur. Princess Ariadne,
daughter of King Minos and Queen Pasiphae, fell in love with Theseus and asked Daedalus to help him.

Daedalus gave her a flaxen thread for Theseus to tie to the door of the Labyrinth as he entered, and by which he
could find his way out after killing the monster. Theseus succeeded, and escaped Crete with Ariadne.

When Minos found out what Daedalus had done he was so enraged that he imprisoned Daedalus & Icarus in the
tallest palace tower, with beautiful views across the island.

To escape, Daedalus built wings for himself and Icarus, fashioned with feathers held together with wax.
Daedalus tried the wings on himself first and was satisfied that his plan would work.

Before taking off from the island, Daedalus warned his son to follow closely behind him. He sternly cautioned
Icarus not to fly too close to the sun, as it would melt his wings, and not too close to the sea, as it would dampen
them and make it hard to fly.

They successfully flew from Crete, but Icarus grew exhilarated by the thrill of flying and began getting careless.
The father and son passed the islands of Samos, Delos and Lebynthos, and the further away from Crete they flew,
the cockier became Icarus.

Forgetting his father’s stern advice, Icarus flew too close to the sun god Helios, who was pulling the sun behind
his chariot high in the sky.

The wax holding together his wings softened and melted from the heat and, try as he might, Icarus could not
prevent the feathers from falling off his body. Furiously he flapped his arms, but soon no feathers at all were left and
he fell to his death, drowning in the sea, as his helpless father watched his son perish with anguish.

His father cried, bitterly lamenting his own arts, and called the land near the place where Icarus fell into the
ocean Icaria in memory of his child. The Icarian Sea, where he fell, was forever named after him and it is said that
the great hero Heracles (Hercules), who was passing by, gave him proper burial.

Daedalus grieved for his dead son and then continued to Sicily, where he came to stay at the court of Cocalus
in a place called Camicus. On the island’s south coast, Daedalus built a temple for Apollo, and hung up his wings, as
an offering to the Olympian god.

But vengeful King Minos wasn’t quite done — he then went in pursuit of Daedalus, hoping to locate and trick
the great inventor into revealing himself. At each city he visited, Minos offered a reward to whoever could thread a
spiral seashell, a seemingly impossible task. Eventually, Minos came to Camicus in Sicily and presented the contest
at Cocalus’ court.

When Minos saw that someone had solved the puzzle, he demanded that Cocalus surrender Daedalus, for he
insisted that only he would have been inventive enough to solve the task. King Cocalus promised to do so, but he
persuaded Minos to first take a bath and stay for some entertainment.

Minos agreed, and was consequently murdered by Cocalus’ daughters, who had been totally impressed by the
toys and gifts which Daedalus had bestowed upon them.

Daedalus eventually left Camicus, much to the dismay of King Cocalus and his daughters, and ended up in
Sardinia with a group led by Iolaus, who was a nephew of Heracles.
 Story Elements

Setting:

Characters:

Daedalus:

Daedalus was an Athenian inventor, sculptor, and architect. His parentage are conflicting, many saying he was
the son of either Athena, Alcippe, etc. Among the many things he constructed, was the labyrinth requested by
King Minos. However, he was eventually locked up inside the labyrinth with his son, Icarus. Eventually, he was
able to escape.

Icarus:

Icarus was the son of Daedalus. Together with his father, they are locked up in the labyrinth. Due to his
rashness and juvenile character, he flew too close to the sun during their escape, and plummeted into the
ocean, and died.

King Minos:

King Minos was the ungrateful king of Crete. He is known for angering many gods, and causing suffering to his
subjects. Among the many consequences he suffered was the creation of the Minotaur, prompting him to
persuade Daedalus to build the labyrinth. He later locked Daedalus inside the labyrinth.

Minotaur:

The Minotaur is a half-man, half-bull creature, son to Queen Pasiphae, King Minos' wife, and a white bull, as a
punishment towards King Minos' ingratitude towards the gods. He was the reason the labyrinth in Crete was
created.

Theme:

PRIDE AND PUNISHMENT

Back in the day, the gods did not like it when humans tried to act like them by overcoming their mortal limits. In
ancient Greek culture, acting like a god was called "hubris", and it was often severely punished. Flying through
the air definitely constituted hubris, since flight was supposed to be a strictly gods-only activity. Watching from
the ground, shepherds and plowmen even mistake Daedalus and Icarus for gods, since mortals had never
before achieved flight.

Of course, Daedalus and Icarus pay a price for overstepping their humanly bounds. Icarus dies and Daedalus
loses a child—lose-lose. It's an important lesson in humility, and the wisdom of living within your limits. The
myth seems to be saying that instead of wanting something extraordinary (such as flying, or in Icarus' case,
flying really high), we should learn to be happy with what we already have.

TECHNOLOGY

Daedalus loves to invent things. What he doesn't love is thinking about the consequences of his inventions. For
example, when Pasiphae (King Minos's wife), asks Daedalus to build her a cow suit so that she can seduce a
bull, Daedalus does it without pausing to consider the possible outcomes. And guess what? Pasiphae's union
with the bull results in the Minotaur, a horrible half-man, half-bull who feasts off human flesh. How's that for
unforeseen consequences?

True, when Daedalus invents the wings made of wax, he briefly considers what might happen if Icarus should
fly too close to the sea (damp wings) or the sun (melty wings). But these thoughts sure don't stop him from
creating or using his feathered inventions. Ultimately, when Icarus falls from the heavens, Daedalus has no one
to blame but himself, since he was the guy who created the devices that allowed the boy to fly so high in the
first place.

Through this myth, we get a glimpse into the dark side of technology—a topic that's still very relevant today.
From genetic modification to nuclear weapons, powerful technologies have powerful and potentially dangerous
consequences. Just think about Jurassic Park and Minority Report and you'll know what we mean: humankind's
curiosity and thirst for invention can lead to awful, scary things.
OVERESTIMATION OF ONE'S ABILITIES

Icarus gets careless and believes he can fly higher than he actually can, and although was initially warned
countlessly by his father, he continues to fly towards the sun. Ultimately, this was his downfall. In the end, it is
also depicted that Daedalus lamented his own arts and ability due to the loss of his son.

NECESSITY IS THE MOTHER OF INVENTION

Daedalus had grown restless and hated his exile and capture in Crete. Due to his desperation to escape, he
invented the pair of wax wings to help his escape.

OBEDIENCE IS IMPORTANT

The death of Icarus was due to disobedience to his father. Moreover, the entire situation with the Minotaur and
the building of the labyrinth was due to King Minos' disobedience towards the gods regarding the issue of
sacrificing to the God of the Sea, Poseidon.

Symbols

Wings

Wings are the tools which Daedalus and Icarus use to escape. Wings normally symbolize freedom and when
connected with people, they can be associated with angels. However, in the context of this myth, the wings
turned out to be the reason why Icarus died.

Sun

The Sun may be associated with the Gods. Icarus had tempted "fate" and divine powers by gloating and flying
too high, over his ability. The sun was ultimately what melted the wax on Icarus' wings and caused him to
plummet to his death in the sea.

Vocabulary Terms

Dwelling - living in a particular type of place

Prominence - Being significantly important or well-known

Lingers - to take longer than is usual to do something

Fleet - a number of warships functioning as a single unit under one command

Fierce - aggression or anger

Tyrant - in ancient Greece, a ruler who took control of a state without legal sanction and governed with absolute
power

Tribute - a payment made by one ruler or state to another as a sign of submission

Gimlet - a small tool for boring holes in wood consisting of a slim metal rod with a sharp corkscrew end

Fortified - to strengthen or reinforce the structure of something

Vague - unclear or incoherent in thinking or expression

Elaborate - having many different parts or a lot of detail

Forbade – Not allowed to do something

Eagerly – enthusiastic and excited about something and impatiently waiting to do or get it

Lest – (or else) in order to prevent something happening, especially something causing fear

Perish – to die

Steadied – fixed, stable, or not easily moved

Beckoned – to signal to somebody to approach with a movement of the hand or head

Swoops - a small tool for boring holes in wood consisting of a slim metal rod with a sharp corkscrew end

Headlong - with the head in front of the rest of the body, especially in a rapid uncontrolled movement

Clutching - hold something tightly

White-faced - having an unusually pale face

Nor – (and not) used to introduce an alternative, after a first alternative that is preceded by "neither"(used in
negative statements)
Generalization

1. In the spaces below, give examples of the advice that various adults give you on a regular basis.
Then, in the next column identify how often you either take or ignore this advice. Be sure to offer
reasons why you either follow or ignore their advice. if you ignored specific advice, what was the
result?

Adults Specific Advice Follow? Ignore? Why? Result

Parents/Guardian
s
Teachers
Other Adults:
Coaches,
Grandparents,
Older Cousins,
Etc.

2. In general, do you think you learn best from other people’s advice or from your own experience?
Explain with an example from your own life.

Generalization

1. In the spaces below, give examples of the advice that various adults give you on a regular basis.
Then, in the next column identify how often you either take or ignore this advice. Be sure to offer
reasons why you either follow or ignore their advice. if you ignored specific advice, what was the
result?

Adults Specific Advice Follow? Ignore? Why? Result

Parents/Guardian
s
Teachers
Other Adults:
Coaches,
Grandparents,
Older Cousins,
Etc.

2. In general, do you think you learn best from other people’s advice or from your own experience?
Explain with an example from your own life.

A. Generalization

1. In the spaces below, give examples of the advice that various adults give you on a regular basis.
Then, in the next column identify how often you either take or ignore this advice. Be sure to offer
reasons why you either follow or ignore their advice. if you ignored specific advice, what was the
result?

Adults Specific Advice Follow? Ignore? Why? Result

Parents/Guardian
s
Teachers
Other Adults:
Coaches,
Grandparents,
Older Cousins,
Etc.

2. In general, do you think you learn best from other people’s advice or from your own experience?
Explain with an example from your own life.
Name: _______________________________________________ Date: _____________________

Evaluation

Read each question carefully and identify what is being asked in the sentence.

1. The name ‘Daedalus’ means?

2. What is the reason why Daedalus murdered his nephew?

3. Because of his crime, he fled to Crete and began to work at the court of whose King and Queen?

4. What did Daedalus invent for the Queen of Crete to satisfy her amorous longings for a white bull
sent by Poseidon?

5. When the dreadful Minotaur was born, what did Daedalus built to contain the monstrous half-man,
half-bull?

6. Who is the Athenian hero who came to Crete to slay the Minotaur?

7. What was the King of Crete punishment to Daedalus after knowing what happened to the
Minotaur?

8. What were Daedalus warnings to his son Icarus before taking off to the island using his invented
wings?

9. Who is the great hero who presumably gave a proper burial to Icarus?

10. What did he do to the wings when he arrived to Sicily?

Name: _______________________________________________ Date: _____________________

Evaluation

Read each question carefully and identify what is being asked in the sentence.

1. The name ‘Daedalus’ means?

2. What is the reason why Daedalus murdered his nephew?

3. Because of his crime, he fled to Crete and began to work at the court of whose King and Queen?

4. What did Daedalus invent for the Queen of Crete to satisfy her amorous longings for a white bull
sent by Poseidon?

5. When the dreadful Minotaur was born, what did Daedalus built to contain the monstrous half-man,
half-bull?

6. Who is the Athenian hero who came to Crete to slay the Minotaur?

7. What was the King of Crete punishment to Daedalus after knowing what happened to the
Minotaur?

8. What were Daedalus warnings to his son Icarus before taking off to the island using his invented
wings?

9. Who is the great hero who presumably gave a proper burial to Icarus?

10. What did he do to the wings when he arrived to Sicily?