Module 1 Section 4

Examining Themes: Building Close Reading Skills

MAKE CONNECTIONS: If you are familiar with Greek mythology, you might have already made the connection between the feathers and feet in the water with the myth of Icarus and Daedalus. The artist, Brueghel, never officially titled this painting. Others drew conclusions about the subject based on those elements and made a title for the painting: Landscape with Fall of Icarus.

This is a fitting title for a painting that depicts a beautiful country scene, or landscape: a farmer, a shepherd, lovely trees, and clouds. But there are those outliers… the feet! The feathers! The mysterious structure in the middle of the water! These outliers make sense once you connect them to the myth of Icarus!

Icarus was the son of Daedalus, a talented craftsman who constructed the Labyrinth for King Minos of Crete. Have you heard of the minotaur? This is the same labyrinth and minotaur from the legend of Theseus. Daedalus and Icarus were imprisoned in the labyrinth by King Minos, until Daedalus constructed a set of wings for each of them to fly out of the prison and escape across the water. Now, the mysterious structure in the water? It could be the island labyrinth!

In the legend, Daedalus warns Icarus not to fly too close to the sun or ocean, as the heat and water would damage the wings. However, Icarus grows braver and as his excitement grows, he flew higher and higher. The heat from the sun melted the wax holding his wings together, and he crashed into the sea, where he drowned.

Now, what do you notice about these parts of the painting in context? How do they relate to the other characters in the painting?