Aesop's Fables

by Gibbs, Laura, Aesop

  This fable is appropriate for a man who is ungrateful.

  NOTE: This elliptical epimythium seems to assume that this fable offers a positive example for a man who is not usually grateful (i.e., for a farmer who does not care for his oxen’s needs). In another version of this fable (included in Chambry’s first edition of the Greek fables), the moral focuses instead on the services offered by the wasps and the partridges: ‘This is a fable for noxious people who promise to be helpful but who are actually very harmful.’

  Fable 125 (Chambry 241* = Perry 112)

  The Ant and the Dung Beetle

  During the summer, the ant went around the fields collecting grains of wheat and barley so that he could store up some food for the winter. A dung beetle watched the ant and decided that he must be a wretched creature since he worked all the time, never taking a moment’s rest, unlike the other animals. The ant didn’t pay attention to the dung beetle and simply went about his business. When winter came and the dung was washed away by the rain, the beetle grew hungry. He went to the ant and begged him to share a little bit of his food. The ant replied, ‘O beetle, if you had done some work yourself instead of making fun of me while I was working so hard, then you would not need to be asking me for food.’

  The fable teaches us that we should not neglect important things that require our attention, and instead we should attend in good time to our future well-being.

  NOTE: For the more famous version of this story about the ant and the cricket, see Fable 126 (following).

  Fable 126 (Syntipas 43 = Perry 373)

  The Ant and the Cricket

  During the wintertime, an ant was living off the grain that he had stored up for himself during the summer. The cricket came to the ant and asked him to share some of his grain. The ant said to the cricket, ‘And what were you doing all summer long, since you weren’t gathering grain to eat?’ The cricket replied, ‘Because I was busy singing I didn’t have time for the harvest.’ The ant laughed at the cricket’s reply, and hid his heaps of grain deeper in the ground. ‘Since you sang like a fool in the summer,’ said the ant, ‘you had better be prepared to dance the winter away!’

  This fable depicts lazy, careless people who indulge in foolish pastimes, and therefore lose out.

  NOTE: For a condemnation of the ant’s foolish greed, see Fable 127 (following). For another negative interpretation of the ant’s behaviour, see Fable 513, the story of the man who became an ant.

  Fable 127 (Odo 42b)

  The Ants and the Pigs

  A fable against the vain accumulation of material goods.

  Ants gather up a big pile of grain so that they can consume it during the winter, but at a certain point the pigs come along and they scatter the grain and eat it all up.

  The same thing often happens to people: they gather much and often, but thieves come, or the bailiffs of the prince, or their own family members, and everything gets devoured, or else they end up leaving their wealth to strangers.

  FABLES ABOUT TREACHERY AND WICKEDNESS

  Fable 128 (Phaedrus 2.4 = Perry 488)

  The Eagle, the Sow, and the Cat

  An eagle had made her nest up high in an oak tree; meanwhile, in a hollow half-way up the tree, a cat had given birth to kittens; finally, at the foot of the tree there was a forest-dwelling sow and her litter of piglets. As it turned out, this fortuitous congregation was eventually destroyed by the cat’s wicked and malicious scheming. First, she went to the eagle’s nest and said, ‘You are about to be destroyed, and so am I! Woe is me! You can see for yourself how the treacherous sow keeps digging in the dirt day after day: she plans to uproot the tree so that she will be able to attack our offspring down there on the ground.’ After having scared the eagle out of her wits with these words, the cat then crept down to the den of the bristly sow. ‘Your litter is in grave danger,’ said the cat, ‘because the eagle is ready to seize your little piglets as soon as you go out to look for food.’ Having filled the houses of both the eagle and the sow with terror, the sneaky creature hid herself safely inside her hollow in the tree. She crept out at night on tiptoe, finding plenty of food for herself and her kittens, but during the day she only poked her nose out of her den, pretending to be afraid. Meanwhile, the eagle didn’t stir from the branches since she expected some disaster and the wild sow would not venture out of doors, since she wanted to protect her home from the eagle’s attack. To make a long story short: the sow and the eagle both died of hunger, together with their children, thus supplying the cat and her kittens with a bountiful feast.

  This fable is a lesson for foolish and gullible people, that someone who speaks with a forked tongue often stirs up all kinds of trouble.

  Fable 129 (Chambry 12* = Perry 16)

  The Cat and the Rooster

  A cat had seized a rooster and wanted to find a reasonable pretext for devouring him. He began by accusing the rooster of bothering people by crowing at night, making it impossible for them to sleep. The rooster said that this was actually an act of kindness on his part, since the people needed to be woken up in order to begin their day’s work. The cat then made a second accusation, ‘But you are also a sinner who violates nature’s own laws when you mount your sisters and your mother.’ The rooster said that this also was something he did for his master’s benefit, since this resulted in a large supply of eggs. The cat found himself at a loss and said, ‘Well, even if you have an endless supply of arguments, I am still going to eat you anyway!’

  The fable shows that when someone with a wicked nature has set his mind on committing some offence, he will carry out his evil acts openly even if he cannot come up with a reasonable excuse.

  NOTE: The cat’s last words in L’Estrange are especially delightful: ‘Come, come, says Puss, without any more ado, ‘tis time for me to go to Breakfast, and Cats don’t live upon Dialogues.’

  Fable 130 (Babrius 89 = Perry 155)

  The Wolf and the Lamb

  A wolf once saw a lamb who had wandered away from the flock. He did not want to rush upon the lamb and seize him violently. Instead, he sought a reasonable complaint to justify his hatred. ‘You insulted me last year, when you were small’, said the wolf. The lamb replied, ‘How could I have insulted you last year? I’m not even a year old.’ The wolf continued, ‘Well, are you not cropping the grass of this field which belongs to me?’ The lamb said, ‘No, I haven’t eaten any grass; I have not even begun to graze.’ Finally the wolf exclaimed, ‘But didn’t you drink from the fountain which I drink from?’ The lamb answered, ‘It is my mother’s breast that gives me my drink.’ The wolf then seized the lamb and as he chewed he said, ‘You are not going to make this wolf go without his dinner, even if you are able to easily refute every one of my charges!’

  NOTE: The similarities between this fable and the Buddhist Dipi-jataka are striking. In the Buddhist fable a goat tries to fend off an aggressive panther: the panther accuses the goat of having stepped on his tail, and the goat replies that the panther is facing the goat, making it impossible to have stepped on his tail, etc.

  Fable 131 (Hesiod, Works and Days 202 ff. = Perry 4)

  The Hawk and the Nightingale

  This is how the hawk addressed the dapple-throated nightingale as he carried her high into the clouds, holding her tightly in his talons. As the nightingale sobbed pitifully, pierced by the hawk’s crooked talons, the hawk pronounced these words of power, ‘Wretched creature, what are you prattling about? You are in the grip of one who is far stronger than you, and you will go wherever I may lead you, even if you are a singer. You will be my dinner, if that’s what I want, or I might decide to let you go.’

  It is a foolish man who thinks he can oppose people who are more powerful he is: he will be defeated in the contest, suffering both pain and humiliation.

  NOTE: Hesiod’s account of the hawk and the nightingale is the oldest attested Aesopic fable in Greek literature (c. eighth century BCE). I have taken the last two lines as an epimythium, rather than inc
luding them as part of the hawk’s speech to the nightingale. Hesiod’s treatment of this fable (and the final lines) has been much discussed; for a recent assessment, see van Dijk 2F1.

  Fable 132 (Avianus 28 = Perry 582)

  The Bullock and the Farmer

  When a bullock resisted the harness and thwarted all efforts to place his rugged neck beneath the clamp of the yoke, the farmer trimmed the animal’s horns with a crosswise cut of the knife and thought the animal had thus been quieted down. Given that the beast was only too prompt with horn and hoof, the farmer then proceeded very carefully as he hitched the bullock’s neck to an enormous plough, no doubt hoping that the long beam would keep him from lashing out, making it hard for the cruel hooves to land a blow. But the bullock began to struggle angrily, pushing with his neck against the ropes and uselessly wearying the innocent earth with his hooves. By stamping his feet he swiftly scattered the stirred-up dirt and it was blown by a blast of wind into his master’s face as he followed the plough. The farmer then shook the dirt from his hair, which was stiff with filth and grit. The defeated farmer groaned and said, ‘I must have needed to learn a lesson in this type of criminal behaviour in which someone uses his intelligence simply to wreak havoc.’

  NOTE: Compare the altogether more satisfying conclusion in Caxton (7.21), when the frustrated farmer finally says to the bullock: ‘For I shalle take the in to the bouchers handes | And thenne was the bole wel chastysed.’

  Fable 133 (Phaedrus App. 26 = Perry 553)

  The Sheep and the Crow

  A detestable crow had seated herself atop a sheep so that the sheep had to carry the crow around against her will. After a while, the sheep remarked, ‘If you had done this to a dog, you would not be able to get away with it: dogs have teeth!’ The obnoxious crow replied, ‘I despise creatures who cannot defend themselves, yet I yield to the high and mighty, as I know who should be attacked and who should be flattered with cunning lies. That is why I last to a ripe old age, living for thousands of years.’

  NOTE: The crow was a proverbially long-lived bird in Greco-Roman folklore, with a lifespan equal to that of nine generations of men (see Ovid, Amores 2.6.35). The deer was another proverbially long-lived animal; see Fable 600.

  Fable 134 (Chambry 21* = Perry 23)

  The Partridge and the Roosters

  A man who kept roosters also bought himself a partridge and let it loose to live among his other birds. When the roosters pecked at the partridge and chased him away, the partridge became very dejected, thinking that the roosters were attacking him because he was an outsider. After a little while, however, the partridge saw the roosters fighting and attacking each other. The partridge then put aside his grief and said, ‘Well, I am certainly not going to grieve over this any longer, now that I see the way they fight with one another.’

  The story shows that a wise person readily tolerates the insolence of strangers when he sees those same strangers mistreating one another.

  Fable 135 (Chambry 122* = Perry 221)

  Zeus and the Snake

  Zeus was getting married and all the animals brought gifts to the wedding. The snake also came creeping along, holding a rose in his mouth. When Zeus saw him, he said, ‘I am willing to take gifts from all the other animals, even when they carry them in their feet, but from your mouth, I will take nothing.’

  The fable shows that even the favours of wicked people are frightening.

  Fable 136 (Life of Aesop 141 = Perry 379)

  The Man and His Daughter

  There was a man who had fallen in love with his own daughter. Goaded by lust, he sent his wife to the countryside, whereupon he forced himself violently on his daughter. She said to him, ‘Father, you are committing an unholy crime. I would rather have offered myself to a hundred men than to you!’

  FABLES ABOUT WICKEDNESS PUNISHED

  Fable 137 (Ademar 39 = Perry 567)

  The Nightingale, the Hawk, and the Bird-catcher

  A hawk who was hunting a rabbit alighted in a nightingale’s nest and found her baby chicks there. When the nightingale returned, she begged the hawk to spare the chicks. The hawk said, ‘I will grant your request, if you sing me a pretty song.’ Even through she mustered all her courage, the nightingale trembled with fear. Stricken with terror, she started to sing but her song was full of grief. The hawk who had seized her chicks exclaimed, ‘That is not a very nice song!’ He then snatched up one of the chicks and swallowed it. Meanwhile, a bird-catcher approached from behind and stealthily raised his snare: the hawk was caught in the sticky birdlime and fell to the ground.

  People who lay traps for others should be careful not to fall into a trap themselves.

  NOTE: For a description of the bird-catcher’s use of a snare made of reeds covered with viscous birdlime, see Fable 138 (following).

  Fable 138 (Chambry 137* = Perry 115)

  The Bird-catcher and the Viper

  The bird-catcher took his birdlime and reeds and went out to catch some birds. When he saw a thrush perched high in a tree, he set up his reeds, attaching them one to another until they were fully extended. He then stared up into the tree, intent on catching the bird, while unawares he stepped on top of a viper that was lying at his feet. The viper was enraged and bit the man. As he breathed his last, the bird-catcher said, ‘Woe is me! I was intent on stalking someone else, while I myself have been hunted to death by another.’

  The story shows that when people plot against their neighbours, they fall victim to the same sort of plot themselves.

  NOTE: Alciato, Emblems 105, assimilates this fable of the bird-catcher to the proverbial philosopher or astronomer who looks up and does not notice what is happening at his feet (see Fable 314): ‘Thus dies the man who looks up at the stars with his bow drawn taut, careless of the destiny which lies at his feet.’

  Fable 139 (Ademar 4 = Perry 384)

  The Frog and the Mouse

  A mouse asked a frog to help her get across the river. The frog tied the mouse’s front leg to her own back leg using a piece of string and they swam out to the middle of the stream. The frog then turned traitor and plunged down into the water, dragging the mouse along with her. The mouse’s dead body floated up to the surface and was drifting along when a kite flew by and noticed something he could snatch. When he grabbed the mouse he also carried off her friend the frog. Thus the treacherous frog who had betrayed the mouse’s life was likewise killed and eaten.

  For people who do harm to others and destroy themselves in the bargain.

  NOTE: For a more elaborate version of this story, see Fable 140 (following). The story of the mouse and the frog occasions one of the most extensive allegorical meditations in Rumi’s Mathnawi, 6.2632 ff.

  Fable 140 (Life of Aesop 133 = Perry 384)

  The Frog and the Mouse

  Back when all the animals spoke the same language, the mouse became friends with a frog and invited him to dinner. The mouse then took the frog into a storeroom filled to the rafters with bread, meat, cheese, olives, and dried figs and said, ‘Eat!’ Since the mouse had shown him such warm hospitality, the frog said to the mouse, ‘Now you must come to my place for dinner, so that I can show you some warm hospitality too.’ The frog then led the mouse to the pond and said to him, ‘Dive into the water!’ The mouse said, ‘But I don’t know how to dive!’ So the frog said, ‘I will teach you.’ He used a piece of string to tie the mouse’s foot to his own and then jumped into the pond, dragging the mouse down with him. As the mouse was choking, he said, ‘Even if I’m dead and you’re still alive, I will get my revenge!’ The frog then plunged down into the water, drowning the mouse. As the mouse’s body floated to the surface of the water and drifted along, a raven grabbed hold of it together with the frog who was still tied to the mouse by the string. After the raven finished eating the mouse he then grabbed the frog. In this way the mouse got his revenge on the frog.

  Fable 141 (Chambry 290* = Perry 196)

  The Snake and the Crab

  A
snake and a crab had become friends and were living together. The crab had a straightforward character and he urged the snake to change his wicked ways, but the snake refused to follow the crab’s good advice. So the crab kept an eye on the snake and when he found him sleeping he grabbed the snake by the neck and squeezed him to death between his claws. As he was dying, the snake stretched out straight. The crab then remarked, ‘Hey, if you had been this straightforward to begin with, I would not have had to punish you for your crooked behaviour!’

  This fable shows that people who treat their friends deceitfully end up hurting themselves instead.

  NOTE: A version of this story is cited by Athenaeus, Deipnosophistae 15.50, as an Athenian drinking song. For the proverbially crooked crab, see Fable 369.

  Fable 142 (Phaedrus 1.9 = Perry 473)

  The Hare and the Sparrow

  With this brief fable I will show that it is a foolish thing to give advice to others while not looking out for oneself.

  A hare had been seized by an eagle and was weeping bitter tears. Meanwhile, a sparrow was making fun of the hare and said, ‘So, what became of your fabled swiftness? How did your feet happen to fail you?’ While the sparrow was still speaking, he was caught off guard by a hawk who killed the sparrow as he was still shrieking his useless cries of protest. The hare, by now no more than half alive, remarked, ‘Ah, this makes my dying easier: a moment ago you were making fun of my misfortune, confident in your own safety, but now you are bewailing your fate with a lament that matches my own.’