Icarus

Icarus is a figure from Greek mythology who is best known for his tragic story of flying too close to the sun with wings made of feathers and wax. The myth has been retold many times in different ways, but always features Icarus’s fateful flight and subsequent death.

The original story of Icarus is found in a poem by the Roman poet Ovid, who lived in the first century AD. In Ovid’s version, Icarus’s father Daedalus was a master craftsman who had been imprisoned by King Minos on the island of Crete. To escape, Daedalus fashioned two pairs of wings from wax, one for himself and one for his son. He warned his son not to fly too close to the sun, but Icarus became overexcited and flew too high, the heat melting his wings and causing him to plummet into the sea and drown.

The story of Icarus has been interpreted in many different ways over the centuries. Some have seen it as a cautionary tale about hubris or arrogance, while others have read it as an allegory about the dangers of technology or progress. Whatever its meaning, the story of Icarus continues to fascinate readers and writers alike, appearing in works of literature, art, music, and film.