The Myth of Daedalus and Icarus

By Lilly Shay-Duran

Summary

Daedalus and his son, Icarus, were summoned to Crete by King Minos. Daedalus was a clever builder and the king wanted him to build a labyrinth in Crete. Minos told Daedalus nothing about why he wanted the labyrinth so when Daedalus found out that Minos was going to use it to house a Minotaur (half-man, half-bull) he wanted to take Icarus and leave. Minos wouldn’t let them leave because Daedalus knew the secret of the labyrinth. King Minos gave Daedalus and Icarus luxuries but held them as prisoners in his tower. Daedalus was determined to find a way to escape.

Little by little, Daedalus collected feathers from birds that stopped by his window and fastened them together with thread and wax. He made two pairs of wings, one for himself and one for Icarus. He warned his son not to fly too high or too low, for the sun will melt the wax and the sea will weigh the wings down.

When they took to flight, nervousness and excitement filled them both. Icarus was so excited that he forgot his father’s warnings and in an attempt to fly away from the seagulls pecking at him, he flew upwards. He flew so high that the sun started melting the wax and his wings started to fall apart. All Daedalus could do was watch as his son fell from the sky into the sea, never to be seen again.

Daedalus swore to himself that he would never fly again.

Meaning

This story is a cautionary tale of Hubris. Daedalus created wings for him and his son to escape the prison that Minos kept them in, but Icarus did not listen to the warnings that his father gave him. Icarus flew too high, overreaching the limits of safety, and died because of it. Icarus was too confident and didn't listen to someone that knew better than he did. We can take out of this story that we cannot let excitement and hubris get the best of us or we might get hurt. We must listen to those who know more than us and be careful when navigating new situations.

Greek Text and Translation

[5] Δαιδάλῳ μὲν γὰρ γένους τε Ἀθήνῃσιν ὑπῆρχεν εἶναι τοῦ βασιλικοῦ τῶν καλουμένων Μητιονιδῶν καὶ ὁμοῦ τῇ τέχνῃ τῆς πλάνης τε ἕνεκα καὶ ἐπὶ ταῖς συμφοραῖς ἐπιφανέστερος ἐγένετο ἐς ἅπαντας ἀνθρώπους. ἀποκτείνας μὲν ἀδελφῆς παῖδα καὶ ἐπιστάμενος τὰ οἴκοι νόμιμα ἑκουσίως παρὰ Μίνω ἔφυγεν ἐς

[6] καταγνωσθεὶς δὲ ἀδικεῖν ὑπὸ τοῦ Μίνω καὶ ἐς δεσμωτήριον ὁμοῦ τῷ παιδὶ ἐμβληθεὶς ἐκδιδράσκει τε ἐκ Κρήτης καὶ ἐς Ἴνυκον Σικελῶν πόλιν ἀφικνεῖται παρὰ Κώκαλον, καὶ πολέμου παρέσχε τοῖς Σικελοῖς αἰτίαν πρὸς τοὺς Κρῆτας, ὅτι ἐξαιτοῦντος Μίνω μὴ πρόοιτο αὐτὸν ὁ Κώκαλος: καὶ ἐς τοσοῦτο ὑπὸ τοῦ Κωκάλου τῶν θυγατέρων ἐσπουδάσθη κατὰ τὴν τέχνην, ὡς καὶ θάνατον τῷ Μίνῳ βουλεῦσαι τὰς γυναῖκας ἐς χάριν Δαιδάλου.

[7] δῆλά τε ὡς ἀνὰ πᾶσαν μὲν τὴν Σικελίαν, ἐπὶ πλεῖστον δὲ καὶ Ἰταλίας ἀφίκετο τοῦ Δαιδάλου τὸ ὄνομα. ὁ δὲ Σμῖλις, ὅτι μὴ παρὰ Σαμίους καὶ ἐς τὴν Ἠλείαν, παρ᾽ ἄλλους γε οὐδένας φανερός ἐστιν ἀποδημήσας: ἐς τούτους δὲ ἀφίκετο, καὶ τὸ ἄγαλμα ἐν Σάμῳ τῆς Ἥρας ὁ ποιήσας ἐστὶν οὗτος.

Κρήτην, καὶ αὐτῷ τε ἀγάλματα Μίνῳ καὶ τοῦ Μίνω ταῖς θυγατράσιν ἐποίησε, καθότι καὶ Ὅμηρος ἐν Ἰλιάδι ἐδήλωσε:

ὁμοῦ τῇ τέχνῃ τῆς πλάνης τε ἕνεκα καὶ ἐπὶ ταῖς συμφοραῖς ἐπιφανέστερος ἐγένετο ἐς ἅπαντας ἀνθρώπους. He was a man famous on account of not only his art but both his wandering and bringing together misfortunes into new state of being into

ἀποκτείνας μὲν ἀδελφῆς παῖδα καὶ ἐπιστάμενος τὰ οἴκοι νόμιμα ἑκουσίως παρὰ Μίνω ἔφυγεν ἐς Κρήτην. He did indeed kill his sister’s child and as the custom is set he voluntarily fled to Minos in Crete.

ἐκδιδράσκει τε ἐκ Κρήτης καὶ ἐς Ἴνυκον Σικελῶν πόλιν ἀφικνεῖται παρὰ Κώκαλον. He escaped from Crete and arrived to Cocalus at Inycus, a city in Sicily.

ὅτι ἐξαιτοῦντος Μίνω μὴ πρόοιτο αὐτὸν ὁ Κώκαλος: καὶ ἐς τοσοῦτο ὑπὸ τοῦ Κωκάλου τῶν θυγατέρων ἐσπουδάσθη κατὰ τὴν τέχνην, ὡς καὶ θάνατον τῷ Μίνῳ βουλεῦσαι τὰς γυναῖκας ἐς χάριν Δαιδάλου. Minos demanded that he be sent back, snd Cocalus refused, his (Cocalus’s) daughters were impressed by his (Daedalus’s) art and the women deliberated Minos’ death.

δῆλά τε ὡς ἀνὰ πᾶσαν μὲν τὴν Σικελίαν, ἐπὶ πλεῖστον δὲ καὶ Ἰταλίας ἀφίκετο τοῦ Δαιδάλου τὸ ὄνομα. Thus it is visable that he became famous all over Sicily and his name was arrived upon the most in Italy.

Reflection

Pausanias describes Daedalus in other contexts other than the myth of him and Icarus attempting to escape Crete to help us get a better understanding of who he was. He tells us that Daedalus belonged to the Athenian clan Metionidae and was famous for his art and his misfortunes. It was only after he killed his sister’s son (out of jealousy), he was exiled and went to Minos in Crete where he and his son were thrown into prison by Minos. After he escaped (story told in the myth of Daedalus and Icarus), he went to Cocalus at Inycus (City in Sicily) This caused a war between the Cretans and the Sicilians because Minos wanted Daedalus back and Cocalus refused to give him back. The daughters of Cocalus were so impressed by Daedalus’s skills in the art that they plotted to kill Minos. Daedalus became famous in Sicily because of his skill.

Relevance

This primary source tells us of Daedalus’s life outside the most known part where he escaped Minos and lost his son. He is a character that we can learn from today because he was successful even after the death of his son, showing that life goes on even after tragedy. We can also see that he let his emotions get the best of him when he killed his nephew because he was jealous, which shows how careful we have to be to control our emotions and actions. He shows that even if he wasn't always doing the right and moral thing, that he could still contribute to society with his skills in art and architecture. Even if we have flaws, we are not worthless.