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Ovid Metamorphoses (a poetic translation): Daedalus and Icarus.
A translation of Ovid's Metamorphoses, poetically rendered in the style of John Dryden and Christopher Marlowe.
Dædalus interea Creten longumque perosus
exsilium tactusque loci natalis amore
Meanwhile Dædalus’ Cretan exile: hates,
And waits to reach his belovēd birthplace,
By having been imprisoned by the sea.
“terra licet” inquit, “et undas
obstruo: at cælum certe patet; ibimus illac.
“Dry lands can and waters bar us” says he,
“Now it’s sure: the open sky; fly there shall we.
omnia possideat, non possidet æra Minos.”
We may take possession of ev’rything,
Not be held in a bronze case by King Minos.”
dixit et ignotas animum dimittit in artes
He said and for skills renews his purpose,
And the unknown nat’ral Order of things.
nam ponit in ordine pennas,
a minima cœptas, longam breviore sequenti,
ut clivo crevisse putes.
Now he builds by layers among the wings
With regard to very small beginnings,
From shorter follows long with that sloping,
You might suppose he’s to be determined.
fistula disparibus paulatim surgit avenis.
Thus in the country sometimes grows a reed,
That he matches like pan-pipes: by degrees.
tum lino medias et ceris adligat imas,
atque ita compositas parvo curvamine flectit,
ut veras imitetur aves.
Then in the middle of which he threads flax,
And lastly binds them together with wax;
And so, by having been put together
With an arc: it curves,
Only in so far as it mimics real birds.
stabat et ignarus sua se tractare pericla,
ore renidenti modo, quas vaga moverat aura,
captabat plumas, flavam modo pollice ceram
mollibat lusuque suo mirabile patris
The boy Icarus (and he) together,
Continued unaware of the dangers
At all, to handle his with mouth smiling,
Which, go’ng far afield, it had changed: the wind
Blew soft feathers he was trying to catch
At the end of his thumb, with yellow wax
Pliant and plays with the work of his fathers’:
So extraordinary, he hinders.
postquam manus ultima cœpto
imposita est, geminas opifex libravit in alas
ipse suum corpus motaque pependit in aura.
When fin’lly ’t is at hand: the beginning,
Embarks, both balanced himself with craftsman’s wings,
His body moves and he hung on in the wind.
instruit et natum, “medio” que, “ut limite curras,
Icare” ait, “moneo, ne, si demissior ibis,
unda gravet pennas, si celsior, ignis adurat.
And he prepares the son: “By the middle”
Even, “Fly that way Icarus,” he says,
“I warn you, not to fly lower, if you will,
The feathers may be weighed-down ’neath the waves,
Should you go higher, you could be burnt: on fire.
inter utrumque vola. ne te spectare Booten
aut Helicen iubeo strictumque Orinis ensem:
me duce carpe viam.”
And you must fly between the two. Not only
That but you are to look at the Big Dipper,
But also the Great Bear: I order you,
Be’ng lightly touched upon, and Orion’s
Sword: I influence you must travel the journey.”
tradit et ignotas umeris accommodat alas.
Equally, taken beforehand: flying
Delivers, and by be’ng pardoned
From the upper-arms he adjusts his wings.
inter opus monitusque genæ maduere seniles,
et patriæ tremuere manus.
By having been warned, Icarus makes for
His home where his old people abounded,
And within reach, his lower lip trembled.
non iterum repetenda suo, pennisque levatus
ante volat comitique timet, velut ales, ab alto
quæ tenerum prolem produxit in æra nido,
hortaturque sequi damnosasque erudit artes
et movet ipse suas et nati respicit alas.
Dædalus gave a small kiss to his son,
They’d n’er ’gain return, both the wings: raised them
Before he flew; just as a bird from heav’n
Fears for that young child he’d raised
From the nest: be’ng injured, to following
The guard’an into the air, encouraged,
And taught the techniques to, himself moving,
Looks back, both at his son, and his own wings.
All intellectual property rights reserved to the translator:
Mr. Maxwell Lewis Latham Cert. H.E. (litteræ humaniores)
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