Daedalus, inventor by trade,
created many a plaything for his young son.
Two wooden disks, string wound between them,
meant to be manipulated for fun.
“Like this,” Daedalus said.
The device rose up and down.
“Is that all it can do?” Icarus demanded.
“Give it to me and I shall see.”
Icarus strode to the woods
new toy in hand,
determined to test its true worth.
Hours later he returned,
blood, feathers and flesh
enmeshed in the now tangled string.
“Son, you must listen to me.
The new can be useful, but dangerous too.
Curb your recklessness
or one day I fear,
your fate will be similar
to the creature you’ve killed.”
Icarus dropped the now useless device,
picked up a stick and swaggered away.
Daedalus found him later that day,
bear grease covered his hands.
“Icarus my son,
what have you done?”
“Father, oh father, my fault it was not,
the stick too short, the fire too hot.”
“When will you learn, my darling son?
You are not an all powerful one.”
Icarus hung his head and quietly replied,
“I love you father. I promise you now,
I shall tether myself close to your side
never again, will I give way to my pride.”
Written for Tuesday Poetics at dVerse, the virtual pub for poets around the globe. Today I’m hosting and asking folks to write a prequel for a famous character from a nursery rhyme, Aesop’s Fables, a famous book, or perhaps mythology. Writers should imagine a previous life for their chosen character. They should tell us about the character before they became famous. For example, what was King Cole like before he was a king? What about Alice as a toddler, encouraged her to fall down a rabbit hole and ultimately meet the Mad Hatter? What hints were there to her personality when she was very young? How or why did Peter Pan learn to fly? How did Hercules develop his muscles, and/or why? Writers should think about a famous character or mythological figure and write a poem showing a different side to them. It must however, be a prequel and their identity should be clear within the poem.
In terms of my prequel: Daedulus, a mythical inventor, created wings made of feathers and wax to escape from Crete where he and his son, Icarus, were held captive by King Minos. Icarus ignored his father’s warnings and flew too close to the sun. His wings melted and he fell to his death into the sea. Image created in Bing Create.
lillian the home poet 
The foreshadowing with that first arrogant question, ““Is that all it can do?” is so well done, Lillian. His desire to do more, outside the bonds of all restraint suggests too our Icarus-like technology obsession, flirting with disaster maybe, pushing boundaries that should perhaps be left alone.
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Thank you, Dora. I like your connection to today’s world of technology….some indeed fear the use of AI….hopefully we won’t fly too close to the sun with it!
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I wonder how many time Icarus had to be told to be careful… they say that you learn from your mistakesk, but for some it’s probably untrue.
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Yep….he sure didn’t stay tethered to his father’s side. Mistakes can be a learning situation and are certainly a part of life. But all one has to do is say the phrase, “history repeats itself” and realize that too often, we don’t learn.
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The story of Icarus and Daedalus is one of my favourites, and one which I used when I was teaching, along with all the wonderful works of art inspired by it. I love that you have Daedalus creating a plaything for his young son, with Icarus demanding: “Is that all it can do?” A wayward child, I think.
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So neat that you taught this particular story. A wayward child indeed. Glad you enjoyed.
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Great poem, Lillian. You’ve definitely presented a pattern for Icarus’s life.
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Thank you, Nicole.
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“Is that all it can do?” Icarus demanded. Brilliant, brilliant weaving of intricate details here, Lillian! I love how the story of Icarus unfolds ❤️❤️
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Thank you, Sanaa!
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This is fabulous Lillian, great imagination of what a young Icarus would be like, and he never did listen 😊
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Yep….a prideful chap in his young days and never did overcome that attitude.
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Our inborn natures are hard to overcome. What a wonderful prequel!
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Glad you enjoyed it….and yes, sometimes inborn natures are hard to overcome!
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I love this story and the story of Icharus flying too close to the sun. The new toy gadget was a nice twist in your prequel tale.
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Thank you, Dwight. You’re the only one to specifically mention the new toy….and did you figure out that it was probably the first yoyo ever made?
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You are welcome. No, I did not catch that as I read. I was picturing the two strings between hands with the spinning wood circle in the middle.
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A nice bit of foreshadowing.
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Thank you! That’s exactly what a prequel should be! 🙂
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Nice one!!!!
Much♡love
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Thank you, Gillena. It got a bit long but I felt I needed that ending.
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Thank you, Lillian. I’ve heard of Icarus but I think not for Daedalus. I did though, remember reading of wings of wax (??) that melted when too close to the sun. Must have been Daedalus. Thank you for the lesson.
..
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Thank you too for the neat prompt. I started late and robbed bedtime to write, ten lines and then an unrully photo too more time.
..
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Glad you enjoyed the prompt!
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Actually Daedalus (the father) was an inventor. He created the wings from wax for both himself and his son to escape their imprisonment in Crete. The son, did not stay “tethered” to his father and probably did not heed his warnings….in any case, the son flew too close to the sun and his wings melted – thus he fell to his death.
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Icarus and Daedaelus’ tale is tragic and I like how you spun a poem, that would subvert the ending ❤️
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Thank you!
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The danger in being adventurous, too keen in trying new things and dismissing the wisdom of elders… I can see this prequel.
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You understood the prequel exactly! Thank you!
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I like your depiction of young Icarus as a twit. He was, and some parents get the children they deserve. Bad cess to both of them 🙂
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yep…he was a twit! Good word for him.
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Wonderful prequel; although a bit sad that the flight of Icarus was probably not his first flirt with burning things. The rhyme and tone of the poem gave me the feel of a different fables lines, the “Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your hair” from it, so for me the poem had that tone while reading. Beautiful writing.
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I can easily think that Icarus never learned his lesson and there were probably later events where he tested his father’s wisdom and paid the price….far before the infamous wax wings.
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It is definitely one of those stories and characters that are there as cautionary tales of character.
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Love the father / son dynamic in this story poem. Two years of high school Latin (incredibly useful though I wondered about it as a teenager) gave me a real appreciation for all stories mythological. Particularly Icarus.
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My husband majored in Latin in high school! Glad you enjoyed the poem.
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Lillian, I loved this: “Is that all it can do?” Icarus demanded.
“Give it to me and I shall see.” It’s like the inciting event of the poem-tale. This was a brilliant prompt. I wrote poetry in my dreams. I had so many ideas!
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So glad you enjoyed the prompt! I have Sanaa’s reading of her prequel to Medusa at an OLN LIVE and Bjorn’s comments on it that made me say, at that OLN LIVE, that would make a great prompt – for folks to write a prequel!
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I love how these prompts are born!
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Lillian, I really like how you skillfully crafted a prequel for Icarus, building a poignant narrative that foreshadows the tragedy that unfolds later.
~David
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Of course Icarus’s parents told him ‘be careful’ and he, well…
Loved how you wove this prequel with those tiny yet impactful moments …
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You brought him to life in a unique and creative way. Kudos!
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Ah, Icarus and pride! A lesson that should never be denied. Loved the rhyme.
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Clever and very creative, Lillian!
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