Icarus Literary Essay

The modern human has for sure evolved from the time of ancient Greece. In the poem Icarus, by Edward Field, a Greek mythological character is put in the bustling, ironic reliableity of the modern world. The once fearless and ambitious Icarus, takes his risk taking alike far and finds himself miser fitting and trapped. His only failure turns out to be his worst failure of all and Icarus cannot fixate up after this final fall. Field uses euphemism, resourcefulness, dictation, and irony to tell the story of a young adventeurer who is futile to overcome his tragic defeat.Icarus provides a strong message to refs about reaching for the stars, but being able to pick yourself up after you fall. Field uses euphemism to describe Icarsus heroic fall (l. 20), not to his tragic death, but or else to the middling stature of the merely talented (l. 21). Icarus is portrayed as a hero in Greek mythology, so when he is transformed into the vastly different, mediocre world, it is his ultimat e fall. His life changes from compeling the sun (l. 14), to riding commuter trains (l. 29).The diversity to mediocrity is worse than death to Icarus, and Edward Field emphasises this through the use of euphemism. Icarus fall to mediocrity is also forceful through Fields strong use of imagery. The reader is able to easily understand and pick up the transition from the first stanza, which describes Icarus tragic death and implies the differences between his traditional home and his tender home, to the third stanza, where imagery deprecates his life in the new world. Right absent imagery illustrates Icarus hard fall into the contemporary world when he goes from a hero to a report filed and bury (l.6).This use of imagery shows how Icarus is quickly forgotten and his peers have a cargonlessness towards his new persona as Mr. Hicks (l. 10). The imagery enforced here helps the reader to understand the harsh reality of Icarus fall to mediocrity. Fields use of irony and dictation are t he final pieces that illustrate Icarus fall to the modern world. In the opening stanza of the poem the ironic culture of the new world is brought to light when the witnesses of Icarus fall run off to a gang war (l. 5). Right away this establishes the cruel stature of urban life and the ironic revision of roles for Icarus.When Icarus report is filed and forgotten (l. 6), it has an ironic coil on Greek mythology, because in ancient Greece tales resembling this would never be forgotten. Icarus new home in the real world is ironic because his new facade as Mr. Hicks (l. 10) is portrayed as a nice, friendly neighbour, which is precise farfetched from Icarus foolish and disobedient personality in his traditional home. Fields use of dictation passim the poem is a constant reminder of the new setting in the contemporary world Icarus is straight off living in.Words like commuter trains (l.29) and committees (l. 30), constantly clarify and emphasis the mediocre setting. Field strongly emp loys techniques of euphemism, imagery, irony, and dictation. In doing so, he conveys both poetically personal reflections and an effective change of Icarus setting, shaping this work as an change surface more tragic story for the protagonist than his death would have been. Icarus provokes the reader to self reflect on their attempts to reach the heavens and their abrupt fallings. It is a reminder to us that no matter how hard you fall, naught will beat the pain of giving up.