Musée des Beaux Arts

1. Who are the "Old Masters"?

2. What is happening in the landscape at the time of Icarus' fall?

3. What is the poet's attitude toward the event?

4. Characterize the tone of the poem.

5. State the theme of the poem in a sentence and support your statement with specific words and phrases from the text.

For Writing or Discussion
Compare the two poems, "Musée des Beaux Arts" and "Landscape with the Fall of Icarus."

Responding to the poem:

Before you consider the response question, think about the following: What is wrong with the world as the speaker sees it? How do pagans relate to Nature? How does his perspective on paganism relate to the view he presents in the first line? How do the allusions to Proteus and Triton emphasize the theme?

Response Question:
Why does the speaker wish he were a pagan?

Other Doorways
Can you find a connection of your own in art, music or another media?
Share your findings with the class.

The Essay
In a well-developed three-part essay, discuss the use of an allusion (or allusions) in a particular poem.