Landscape with the Fall of Icarus

959 words 4 pages
Show More
Myths explain our circumstances in the world and the universe. A prime example of this is the myth of Icarus and Daedalus. Pieter Brueghel painted a picture decrypting the moment of Icarus fall from the heavens. And the two poets William Carlos Williams and W. H. Auden each wrote a poem based on Brueghel's painting, both of which developed a deep meaningful message to the reader. Diction, connotation, and denotation are all used to help describe the emotions and tragedies that Brueghel's painting portrays. These poems are written based on the myth of Icarus.
Pieter Brueghel's painting tricks the observer. The viewer is first drawn left, where a red-shirted farmer and his horse, plowing a hill, descend into shadows. The eyes then wander …show more content…
An example of this is the fact that the first stanza of the poem has no mention of Icarus whatsoever, which exemplifies how the human emotion to something as big as a person dying can be ignored during the routine events of a person's day.
Auden and Williams poems are written in completely different styles and have there own strengths and weaknesses, but what is not easily known is that both these poems have one strong similarity. In each of the poems there is no mention to the myth character Icarus, which Brueghel's painting, describes until near the end of each poem. In a way this action tricks the readers and observers and might confuse them as well by not mentioning the point of the poems or illustrating the scene more clear. As illustrated in the painting the figure of Icarus drowning is hidden in the far right bottom corner of the picture. An observer would not notice the figure at first just as a reader would not realize that the poems were written about the Icarus myth until the end.
Poems are a way to express feelings that are not easily expressed. Poems can be written about anything or anyone. Poems however can be written in different styles and methods. Auden and Williams are prime examples of this, for instance the way they can both take the same image to inspire them but right in completely different ways. Auden's poem is the stronger of the two in mirroring the image he saw in Brueghel's painting. Auden made sure to use his subtle

Related

  • Patient Falls
    1652 words | 7 pages

    Case Study Analysis - Patients Falls Case Study Analysis - Patients Falls Quality management departments collect and analyze data to ensure quality care that is safe and effective for patients. Positive outcomes are crucial for success, and are measured objectively to monitor, and revise improvement programs implemented. Regulatory and accreditation agencies set the standards for patient safety defining quality indicators that health care organizations measure, and evaluate to….

    Show More
  • Rise and Fall of Enron
    876 words | 4 pages

    The rise and fall of Enron is a company that was lead to its own demise by it’s own leadership and ill business decisions. The motivational theories explained from the readings of Organization Behavior can correlate with the failure of Enron’s internal organization. Even though a company may appear to display successful business practices, the influence of leadership through management can ultimately lead the company to fail. Enron’s code of ethics prided itself on four key values; respect, integrity….

    Show More
  • Character Comparison for "The Fall of the House of Usher" and "A Rose for Emily"
    1135 words | 5 pages

    Interpretation of Fiction January 31, 2012 “Until Death Do Us Part” Through both “The Fall of the House of Usher” written by Edgar Allan Poe and “A Rose for Emily” written by William Faulkner, we see common themes of a gothic genre filled with rhetorical twists and turns. The dynamics in each work are elaborately depicted through the eyes of two narrators who are watching these pieces unfold. Many similar themes experienced in both Poe and Faulkner’s work deal with the ideology of death and preservation….

    Show More
  • Sundiata/ Things Fall Apart Essay
    1249 words | 5 pages

    that one cannot truly talk about the land, unless they have lived the land. Two particular novels and oral epics that depict this perspective, the perspective of the colonized, are Things Fall Apart, written by Nigerian author Chinua Achebe, and Sundiata by author Djibril Tamsir Niane. At the end of Things Fall Apart, the District Commissioner, who was the British colonial administrator put in place to govern the Igbo society, is shown writing a book he plans to call the Pacification of the Primitive….

    Show More
  • Fall of Enron
    1137 words | 5 pages

    The Fall of Enron 1. Why was Enron such an admired company prior to 2000? What innovation do they bring to the table? Be specific and support your statement with concrete information. Prior to the year 2000, Enron Company, established in the mid-80s, caused the admiration worldwide because of its fast rise of revenue both in the local and international stock market in a short period of time. Enron’s operating income in the year 2000 was stated in $100.7 billion and its after-tax net income was….

    Show More
  • Fall of Ibm
    1659 words | 7 pages

    Title: The Fall of IBM Date: September 20, 2013 I. Executive Summary The purpose of this case study analysis is to analyze the situation of IBM in the 1990s, to come up with possible mutually exclusive alternatives for IBM’s management and ultimately, to recommend a possible strategy to regain back IBM’s throne in the industry. The problem of the case study is all about the survival of IBM in a much more competitive market ever encountered by the company. And also, overcoming new….

    Show More
  • Things Fall Apart Proverbs
    1109 words | 5 pages

    Things Fall Apart Proverbs Proverbs are phrases use to explain certain solutions. Proverbs can explain specific situations within certain words to get the point across. The function for proverbs is to describe something without having to be forward with what is being said. There were five proverbs from things fall apart that stuck out to me. These proverbs are “when a man says yes chi also says yes”, what is good in one place is bad in another”, “If I fall down for you and you fall down for….

    Show More
  • An Analysis of Culture in Things Fall Apart
    1683 words | 7 pages

    The novel “Things Fall Apart” written by Chinua Achebe, is a tale based on the traditional beliefs and customs of an Ibo village during late 1800’s Africa. Through the telling of this story, we witness the remarkable depth of Igbo culture through its functions of religion, politics, judiciary and entertainment. One of Achebe’s challenges was to illustrate the Ibo’s religious system. Even though the Ibo people had little contact with the outside world, they had developed their own beliefs and practices….

    Show More
  • Landscapes Essay
    1787 words | 8 pages

    One of the most overlooked changes that takes place is that of the environment and landscape. The landscape is one of the most important parts of our society's culture and has a great effect on how we live. It seems that nowadays, many individuals are taking advantage of the land and nothing appreciating it for every thing that it is worth. Its true that not everyone is going to look at the environment and landscape in the same way, however that is no excuse to disrespect it. Then again, a whole….

    Show More
  • Burial Rites Landscape and Weather
    1138 words | 5 pages

    How does Hannah Kent make the landscape and weather an integral part of the novel? Amidst the journey of the last woman executed in Iceland is the ‘nature [that] is watchful of all of us.’ Kent parallels the protagonist Agnes’ story alongside the force of the harsh Icelandic climate and country that ‘is as awake as you and I’ and often determines key events in the novel. The ominous foreshadowing of death represented in elements of the landscape highlights how the country is an essential aspect….

    Show More

Popular Essays