Myths of Ancient Greece: Daedalus and Icarus. Legend summary, pictures

By myth we now call something fantastic, fictional, something that was not in real historical reality. Our word "myth" comes from the ancient Greek word "müthos". The ancient Greeks, or Hellenes, as they called themselves, this translated means "word, speech or conversation, intention, proverbs, rumor, list, stories, translation, bike, story content." Consequently, the word had more meanings than the modern "myth". When we want to say that, in fact, something was not in the documented history, then we use the adjective "mythical". For example, the famous Hercules (or Hercules, as it was called by the Romans) is a mythical person, the hero of many ancient Greek myths. There is also the word "mythology" (also of Greek origin). We call them the totality of the myths of a particular people, and the branch of knowledge, the science that studies myths.

Attitude to the myths in Ancient Greece

Almost any people from ancient times have traditions in which historical intertwines with fictional, reality with imagination. In these stories, not only some people act, but also amazing creatures - the fruits of creativity. They are immortal gods and demigods, unseen creatures. There are amazing miracles. In ancient times, people perceived myths as authentic stories about what was before. But centuries passed, and they smoothly turned into ordinary grandmother's tales. Only small children believed in their reality. Legends began to be interpreted not in a direct, but in a figurative sense. Myths were the embodiment of human dreams. For example, the work "Daedalus and Icarus" clearly reflects the desire for flight. However, there is also a moral. Myth "Daedalus and Icarus" teaches that even from unattainable heights you can be subverted down.

Myths as the basis of ancient Greek culture

In ancient Greece (or Hellas) myths were the basis of sculpture, literature, painting, theatrical art. They were formed long before the letter spread there - the Greek alphabet. One and the same legend about some god or hero could exist in different versions and interpretations: local, temporary (arisen at different times) and author's (everything depended on who invented or retold it). An exception was not the work "Daedalus and Icarus". There were similar myths among different tribes and peoples. The point here is not only that one tribe could borrow from some other legend. Most often, it happened when different nations stood on a similar level of development, lived in similar conditions. Sometimes the similarity of the myths of different tribes is explained by the original relationship, the common origin of these communities, for example the Greeks, the Romans, the Celts, the Germans, the Slavs, the Iranians, the Indians. Very interesting is the ancient Greek legend "Daedalus and Icarus". Pictures and sculptures dedicated to him, as well as a summary of it can be found in this article.

Ancient Greek Pantheon

Between the younger gods (Zeus, Poseidon, Hero, Hestia, Demetra and others) and the older - the Titans - there was a horrible ten-year war. Finally, the first with the help of the hundred-handed and Cyclops released from the underground world defeated the latter and settled on Olympus. There were many myths about the deeds of the gods - useful, and sometimes fatal to mortal people. They are like people with their advantages and disadvantages.

Mythical creatures

Often in myths are fantastic creatures - monsters. For example, the ancient Greek myth "Daedalus and Icarus" tells, along with the main storyline, and about the terrible Minotaur - the beast of King Minos. The fantasy of the ancient Greeks created centaurs - half-humans, semi-conies, formidable Gorgons with snakes instead of hair, a seven-headed hydra (the myth of Hercules), a three-headed dog Cerberus guarding the underworld of Hades,

Myths and Astronomy

The names of almost all the constellations are somehow related to the ancient Greek myths. The constellation of Andromeda evokes in our memory the legend of Perseus, and he himself gave the name of a cluster of stars, like the parents of Andromeda - Cefei and Cassiopeia. Pegasus is that winged horse on which the hero Bellerophon opposed the chimeras. The Big Dipper is the nymph Callisto (the mother of Arkada, the ancestor of the Arcadians), the Little Bear is the nymph of the KinoSura. Aries is a ram, on which Frix and Gella flew to Colchis. Hercules also turned into a constellation (Hercules), Orion - a hunter who was a companion of Artemis. Lira is the cipher of Orpheus, etc. Even the planets of the solar system are called by their names myths. Next, the legend of Daedalus and Icarus will be told. This is an instructive story.

"Daedalus and Icarus": a brief summary. Stuffing events

Once upon a time, in ancient times, in Athens lived a talented artist, carver and builder Daedalus - the scion of the royal family. It was believed that Athena herself taught him various crafts. Daedalus built large palaces and temples, which struck everyone with their harmony. For them, he himself carved from the tree figures of immortal gods, so beautiful that people then carefully preserved them for centuries.

Dedal's pupil was his nephew Tal, another teenager. Somehow the guy looked at the fish bone, looked attentively at her and soon made a saw-a new thing for people. He also invented a potter's wheel to make it easier to mold utensils. Tal also invented the compasses.

The death of Tala and the exile

The Athenians learned of Dedalov's extraordinary ability as an apprentice and rightly believed that the latter would soon exceed his teacher. And how terribly Athens was struck by the news that Tal, walking with Daedalus Acropolis, stumbled and fell from a height. In his death, the Athenians accused the teacher and sentenced the artist to exile. Daedalus sailed to Crete, where Minos reigned. There he married. His son Icarus was born. However, Daedalus was very homesick. Then the tsar had a misfortune. His wife gave birth to him instead of his son a monster - the Minotaur. The master built a labyrinth for the monster to hide it from the eyes of people.

Daedalus and Icarus (exposition): the way home

Years have passed. Daedalus and Icarus zasobiralis in Athens. However, Minos did not let the master go. Daedalus left this position and made himself and his son wings, like birds, to fly across the sky, if the sea is closed to them. The master taught his offspring to fly and punished not to go too high, otherwise the sun will melt the wax (the component of the design of the wings). Low over the sea, too, soaring was not ordered so that the water did not wet the flying device. The master taught his son to stick to the golden mean. However, they did not find the common language Daedalus and Icarus (pictures with wings can be seen in this article).

The death of Icarus

The next day they acted in cloudless azure. No one in the palace of the ruler saw this. The flight was observed only by the plowmen in the field, the shepherd who drove the herd, saw a fisherman. They all thought that the immortal gods were floating. Initially, Icarus obediently followed his father. However, the feeling of flight, unknown and surprising, filled him with inexpressible joy. After all, great happiness is to wave like a huge bird with big wings and feel that they carry you even higher.

In an indescribable ecstasy Icarus forgot the warning of the parent and rose very high - until the golden sun. Suddenly, with great horror, he began to feel that the wings no longer held him as tightly as before. The hot sun's rays melted their wax, and the feathers fell down. Now, in vain, the young man tried to wave his wingless hands. He called his father to help, but Daedalus did not hear him. Then he searched for his son for a long time and desperately. But I found only feathers on the waves. After understanding what had happened, he was distraught with grief. Icarus's body was buried by Hercules, and the sea into which he fell was called Ikaria.

Daedalus himself was in Sicily for a long time, and then moved to Athens, where he became the founder of the kind of artists of the Dedalidas.