a short rant about the Icarus that lies dormant in me

The Story of Icarus

Icarus is a mythological character whose father, Daedalus, made him wings made of beeswax to escape captivity from King Minos, the only stipulation: don’t fly too close to the sun or sea, explaining how flying too close to the sun will make the wings melt, and flying too close to the sea will make the wings too heavy. Blinded by ambition and excitement, Icarus flew too close to the sun where his wax wings melted, and he fell into the sea and drowned.

There are many interpretations to this story: this is a cautionary tale about the consequences of being too ambitious, while some see this as a positive story about celebrating the idea of living life to the fullest. I’ve also read people say it’s a warning of having excess pride and thinking they know better than to heed cautions. However, all can be true at the same time. It all depends on perception and circumstance.

The Inspiration Behind the Rant

I’ve been thinking about this story a lot lately. I would hear references to Icarus in pop culture, like its mention in Hamilton during the song Burn when Eliza discovered her husband was having an affair with a married woman while she and their children vacationed at her family’s home.

“You’ve married an Icarus; he’s flown too close to the sun.”

Angelica Schyler

From this, being an Icarus is seen as a negative trait. However, I’ve also heard a whole song about being nothing like Icarus called “Opposite of Icarus” by Kyle Stibbs (good song if you want to check it out). In this song, it’s almost like being unambitious or modest is seen as a negative, or rather, seen as a threat.

“Be lesser than dirt to you. Isn’t it the opposite of Icarus, where we find our meaning?”

Kyle Stibbs

It’s an interesting song, almost like it has its own story about a man that’s had enough. Enough of what? It’s unclear. But when you listen to the lyrics and the way it’s sung, you can sense a lack of control and his intense desire to fix the situation. His only way is to not be seen as the other’s equal and turn to dirt in their eyes. His words. Sounds a bit like reactive abuse to me, and I would be interested to know how the singer came up with the idea for the song.

Regardless, it’s a fascinating look into what being an Icarus means to those who hear his story. Of course, what I told in the beginning wasn’t the full story of Icarus, so I’m sure I’m missing something. Though, Kyle Stibbs’ song remains to be the reason I looked into this story.

As you can tell, I don’t know much about Greek mythology, so these characters and names are foreign to me. However, the idea behind Icarus’s ambition becoming his death has opened my eyes my own flaws and corrections.

The Icarus Within Me

It’s true. Icarus’s spirit lies within me, at least a little. You could argue that it’s in all of us. When first watching Hamilton, the character I related to the most was Alexander. I, too, was never satisfied in life, and I thought at a time that I knew better than those around me when they gave me warnings. Maybe I still am that way. But I’m more cautious now. I’m doing my best to imprison my impulses, though at times they slip by.

However, I also see myself as the opposite of Icarus, being lesser than dirt and viewing every move I make as consequences to my actions. I’m working on this too.

One thing I know for absolutely certain, though, is I don’t want to be a hero. At least not the portrayal in movies. I want to make a change; I want to make my life mean something. But then, I’m succumbing to the same fate as other heroes. Real heroes don’t help others for the glory or recognition. They do it because they want to. I used to want the glory. I hated being the background character waiting for my time in the spotlight, when I’ll be seen as important. Because then, what am I doing good deeds for? Myself? Or them?

I caught myself doing this recently. I wanted recognition for volunteering at a child visitation center, but people treated it as a normal occurrence. It’s not that I wanted the praise, but maybe my irritation with feeling unimportant had gotten to me. That’s what pride does. It swallows you till you accept reality. While the feelings of being minuscule in comparison with the rest of the world presently resides in me, I’m learning to accept and live with this. I do still aspire to help others, but I won’t let praise or discouragement lead me too close to the sun.