Icarus Flight Poem

What else could the boy have done? Wasn’t 1

flight both an escape and a great uplifting?

And so he flew. But how could he appreciate

his freedom without knowing the exact point

where freedom stopped? So he flew upward 5

and the sun dissolved the wax and he fell.

But at last in his anticipated plummeting

he grasped the confines of what had been

his liberty. You say he flew too far?

He flew just far enough. He flew precisely 10

to the point of wisdom. Would it

have been better to flatter ignorantly

13 from petal to petal within some garden

forever? As a result, flight for him was not

upward escape, but descent, with his wings 15

disintegrating around him. Should it matter

17 that neither shepherd nor farmer with his plow

watched him fall? He now had his answer,

laws to uphold him in his downward plunge.

Cushion enough for what he wanted. 20

Look at the 3rd stanza. Which lines in this stanza provide an example of alliteration?

• "He flew precisely to the point of wisdom."

• "You say he flew too far?/He flew just far enough."

• "Would it have been better to flutter ignorantly..."

• "...his liberty"

What else could the boy have done? Wasn’t 1

flight both an escape and a great uplifting?

And so he flew. But how could he appreciate

his freedom without knowing the exact point

where freedom stopped? So he flew upward 5

and the sun dissolved the wax and he fell.

But at last in his anticipated plummeting

he grasped the confines of what had been

his liberty. You say he flew too far?

He flew just far enough. He flew precisely 10

to the point of wisdom. Would it

have been better to flatter ignorantly

from petal to petal within some garden

forever? As a result, flight for him was not

upward escape, but descent, with his wings 15

disintegrating around him. Should it matter

that neither shepherd nor farmer with his plow

watched him fall? He now had his answer,

laws to uphold him in his downward plunge.

Cushion enough for what he wanted. 20

Read the 4th stanza. Which line from the poem shows examples of alliteration?

• "...that neither shepherd not farmer with his plow..."

• "...watched him fall."

• "...in his downward plunge."

• "He now had his answer,"

What else could the boy have done? Wasn’t 1

flight both an escape and a great uplifting?

And so he flew. But how could he appreciate

his freedom without knowing the exact point

where freedom stopped? So he flew upward 5

and the sun dissolved the wax and he fell.

But at last in his anticipated plummeting

he grasped the confines of what had been

his liberty. You say he flew too far?

He flew just far enough. He flew precisely 10

to the point of wisdom. Would it

have been better to flatter ignorantly

from petal to petal within some garden

forever? As a result, flight for him was not

upward escape, but descent, with his wings 15

disintegrating around him. Should it matter

that neither shepherd nor farmer with his plow

watched him fall? He now had his answer,

laws to uphold him in his downward plunge.

Cushion enough for what he wanted. 20

What is most unusual about the structure of the poem?

• It does not have a consistent rhyme scheme.

• It is organized into five stanzas.

• Capitalization and punctuation are missing.

• Sentences extend from one stanza into the next.

What else could the boy have done? Wasn’t 1

flight both an escape and a great uplifting?

And so he flew. But how could he appreciate

his freedom without knowing the exact point

where freedom stopped? So he flew upward 5

and the sun dissolved the wax and he fell.

But at last in his anticipated plummeting

he grasped the confines of what had been

his liberty. You say he flew too far?

He flew just far enough. He flew precisely 10

to the point of wisdom. Would it

have been better to flatter ignorantly

from petal to petal within some garden

forever? As a result, flight for him was not

upward escape, but descent, with his wings 15

disintegrating around him. Should it matter

that neither shepherd nor farmer with his plow

watched him fall? He now had his answer,

laws to uphold him in his downward plunge.

Cushion enough for what he wanted. 20

In the first line, the poet asks, “What else could the boy have done?” What answer is the poet expecting?

• He could have flown lower

• He could have flown farther

• There is nothing else he could have done.

• He could have stayed in the garden.

What else could the boy have done? Wasn’t 1

flight both an escape and a great uplifting?

And so he flew. But how could he appreciate

his freedom without knowing the exact point

where freedom stopped? So he flew upward 5

and the sun dissolved the wax and he fell.

But at last in his anticipated plummeting

he grasped the confines of what had been

his liberty. You say he flew too far?

He flew just far enough. He flew precisely 10

to the point of wisdom. Would it

have been better to flatter ignorantly

from petal to petal within some garden

forever? As a result, flight for him was not

upward escape, but descent, with his wings 15

disintegrating around him. Should it matter

that neither shepherd nor farmer with his plow

watched him fall? He now had his answer,

laws to uphold him in his downward plunge.

Cushion enough for what he wanted. 20

What is the best statement of the poem’s theme or message?

• Test your limits to learn what’s possible.

• Practice moderation in all things.

• Be content with what you have.

• Work hard to prepare for the future.

What else could the boy have done? Wasn’t 1

flight both an escape and a great uplifting?

And so he flew. But how could he appreciate

his freedom without knowing the exact point

where freedom stopped? So he flew upward 5

and the sun dissolved the wax and he fell.

But at last in his anticipated plummeting

he grasped the confines of what had been

his liberty. You say he flew too far?

He flew just far enough. He flew precisely 10

to the point of wisdom. Would it

have been better to flatter ignorantly

from petal to petal within some garden

forever? As a result, flight for him was not

upward escape, but descent, with his wings 15

disintegrating around him. Should it matter

that neither shepherd nor farmer with his plow

watched him fall? He now had his answer,

laws to uphold him in his downward plunge.

Cushion enough for what he wanted. 20

What language device or structure does the poet use to communicate his message?

• sentence fragments

• rhyme and repetition

• comparison and contrast

• question-and-answer

What else could the boy have done? Wasn’t 1

flight both an escape and a great uplifting?

And so he flew. But how could he appreciate

his freedom without knowing the exact point

where freedom stopped? So he flew upward 5

and the sun dissolved the wax and he fell.

But at last in his anticipated plummeting

he grasped the confines of what had been

his liberty. You say he flew too far?

He flew just far enough. He flew precisely 10

to the point of wisdom. Would it

have been better to flatter ignorantly

from petal to petal within some garden

forever? As a result, flight for him was not

upward escape, but descent, with his wings 15

disintegrating around him. Should it matter

that neither shepherd nor farmer with his plow

watched him fall? He now had his answer,

laws to uphold him in his downward plunge.

Cushion enough for what he wanted. 20

What does the poet suggest by the lines “to flutter ignorantly / from petal to petal within some garden” (lines 12–13)?

• a busy, fulfilled life

• a dull, boring life

• a life of peace and harmony

• a life of freedom and escape

What else could the boy have done? Wasn’t 1

flight both an escape and a great uplifting?

And so he flew. But how could he appreciate

his freedom without knowing the exact point

where freedom stopped? So he flew upward 5

and the sun dissolved the wax and he fell.

But at last in his anticipated plummeting

he grasped the confines of what had been

his liberty. You say he flew too far?

He flew just far enough. He flew precisely 10

to the point of wisdom. Would it

have been better to flatter ignorantly

from petal to petal within some garden

forever? As a result, flight for him was not

upward escape, but descent, with his wings 15

disintegrating around him. Should it matter

that neither shepherd nor farmer with his plow

watched him fall? He now had his answer,

laws to uphold him in his downward plunge.

Cushion enough for what he wanted. 20

Which word best describes the poet’s attitude toward Icarus?

• critical

• dismissive

• admiring

• questioning

What else could the boy have done? Wasn’t 1

flight both an escape and a great uplifting?

And so he flew. But how could he appreciate

his freedom without knowing the exact point

where freedom stopped? So he flew upward 5

and the sun dissolved the wax and he fell.

But at last in his anticipated plummeting

he grasped the confines of what had been

his liberty. You say he flew too far?

He flew just far enough. He flew precisely 10

to the point of wisdom. Would it

have been better to flatter ignorantly

from petal to petal within some garden

forever? As a result, flight for him was not

upward escape, but descent, with his wings 15

disintegrating around him. Should it matter

that neither shepherd nor farmer with his plow

watched him fall? He now had his answer,

laws to uphold him in his downward plunge.

Cushion enough for what he wanted. 20

Which phrase from the poem best expresses what Icarus gained from his flight?

• “downward plunge”

• “point of wisdom”

• “just far enough”

• “upward escape"

What else could the boy have done? Wasn’t 1

flight both an escape and a great uplifting?

And so he flew. But how could he appreciate

his freedom without knowing the exact point

where freedom stopped? So he flew upward 5

and the sun dissolved the wax and he fell.

But at last in his anticipated plummeting

he grasped the confines of what had been

his liberty. You say he flew too far?

He flew just far enough. He flew precisely 10

to the point of wisdom. Would it

have been better to flatter ignorantly

from petal to petal within some garden

forever? As a result, flight for him was not

upward escape, but descent, with his wings 15

disintegrating around him. Should it matter

that neither shepherd nor farmer with his plow

watched him fall? He now had his answer,

laws to uphold him in his downward plunge.

Cushion enough for what he wanted. 20

What does the poet mean by “his anticipated plummeting” (line 7)?

• Icarus knew that he would eventually fall.

• Icarus was surprised by his fall.

• Icarus regretted trying to fly.

• Icarus knew that people were watching him.