Landscape with the Fall of Icarus

by Pieter Bruegel the Elderc. 1558

Royal Museum of Fine Arts, Brussels

Write the following: Activity I and II

the title of the painting the artist’s name one detail from the background one detail from the foreground

Landscape with the Fall of Icarus

by Pieter Bruegel the Elderc. 1558

Royal Museum of Fine Arts, Brussels

Pieter Bruegel Pieter Bruegel

the Elder, nicknamed ‘Peasant Bruegel’ was probably the most significant and exciting painter in the Northern Europe during the middle part of the sixteenth century. His nickname “Peasant Bruegel” indicates his subjects: peasant life, proverbs and genre scenes, the New Testament— topics set among common folks of contemporary Flanders.

*

Remember

The learner can recall information and/or processes at will.

Activity III

Write a brief description of the scene depicted in the painting.

Icarus’ legs

Shepherd gazes at the sky

Farmer concentrates on plowing

The ship sails right by

The man on shore doesn’ t notice

Understand

Learners make connections between what they already know and the new ideas they are trying to assimilate.

The “understand” level of thinking usually involves conceptual knowledge, the comprehension of an idea.

Sensory Impressions and Mood—Activity IV

Animal sounds—horse, sheep, dog; wind blowing through trees; splash as Icarus hits the water

Warmth of the sun; soft, newly-plowed earth; movement of ship; coolness of water; breeze in sails; whip on horse; edge of plowed row;

Salty air; dust/dirt stirred by plow

Sun going down; delicate sailing ship; farmer plowing; Icarus’ legs thrashing the sea; shepherd gazing into sky; city in background

Scents of animals; salty air; newly plowed earth; sweaty farmer; “fishy” seaside smells

Quiet; peaceful, mundane; apathetic; disinterested; idyllic; expectant, lonely; detached, etc.

Apply

Learners use procedures and processes they have already learned to execute tasks and solve problems.

Activity V.

What is a theme of the painting?

List three or more specific details that support this theme.

Inductive and Deductive Reasoning

Inductive and Deductive reasoning has to do with how people reason logically.

Inductive: moving from specifics to a general conclusion

Deductive: moving from a general to a specific conclusion

Analyze

Learners break material down into its constituent parts and determine how the parts are related to each other and to an overall structure.

Activity VI:

Which detail in the painting most effectively conveys the theme?

Justify your answer.

Evaluate

Learners detect flaws or inconsistencies in a product or process and/or use pre-determined criteria to judge the quality of a product or text.

Activity VIILandscape With The Fall of Icarus by William Carlos Williams

According to Brueghel when Icarus fell it was spring

a farmer was ploughing his field the whole pageantry

of the year was awake tingling near

the edge of the seaconcernedwith itself

sweating in the sun that melted the wings' wax

unsignificantly off the coast there was

a splash quite unnoticed this was Icarus drowning

From Collected Poems: 1939-1962, Volume II by William Carlos Williams, published by New Directions Publishing Corp. © 1962 by William Carlos Williams. Reprinted by permission of New Directions Publishing Corp.

Using the Williams poem as a model, create an original poem, taking the perspective of one of the following and beginning with the sentence “According to ______________, when Icarus fell….”

someone on the deck of the ship the plowman the fisherman on the bank Icarus Daedalus the sheepherder

Create (Synthesize)

Learners combine elements into a different form or merge information from several sources into a unified whole. A new product comes into being from previously existing materials or texts.

Credits Image of Brueghel available at: http

://www.abcgallery.com/B/bruegel/bruegel152.JPG

Vulpine reading of “Landscape with the Fall of Icarus” available at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pf5MFIC1fOs