Tiny Tales: Traditional Stories in 100 Words: Aesop: LEstrange

Showing posts with label Aesop: LEstrange. Show all posts

~ 6. The Lion's Army ~

There was a fierce war between the beasts and the birds, and the lion had taken command of the army of beasts, with tigers and bears, leopards and wolves, and all sorts of mighty warriors in his ranks.
The donkeys and rabbits wanted to enlist too.
The tigers and bears and other warriors scoffed, but the lion accepted the volunteers gladly. "The donkeys will be my trumpeters," the lion said, "and the rabbits will be my couriers."
The greatest commanders know how to make the best use of all their soldiers, based on the strengths of each and every one.

Inspired by: Fables of Aesop and Other Eminent Mythologists by Roger L'Estrange, 346.
Notes: This fable is not part of the classical Aesop tradition; find out more here.

Here is an illustration by Billinghurst:

~ 10. The Lion and the Boar ~

Laura Gibbs · 10. The Lion and the Boar

A lion and a boar were fighting fiercely.
"I'll kill you!" roared the lion.
The boar growled back, "Not before I kill you!"
The vultures were delighted to hear these words, and they settled comfortably in a tree, watching the fight and waiting to see who would kill and who would be killed.
"I'd like lion for dinner," said one of the vultures.
"I'd prefer boar," said another.
But the boar and lion finally tired of fighting and left the scene, while the vultures cursed them both. "The lion has betrayed our hopes," they squawked, "and so has the boar."

Inspired by: Fables of Aesop and Other Eminent Mythologists by Roger L'Estrange, 456.
Notes: This is Perry 338.

Here is an illustration by Harrison Weir:

~ 14. The Lion and the Donkey Go Hunting ~

Laura Gibbs · 14. The Lion and the Donkey Go Hunting

A lion and a donkey agreed to go hunting in partnership together.
One day they happened upon a pack of wolves. The donkey brayed loudly and raced at the wolves as if he were going to swallow them whole.
"Hee-haw!" he shouted. "Hee-haw!"
The wolves laughed, but when they glimpsed the lion running up behind the donkey, they turned tail and ran away.
"Behold!" said the donkey. "The tremendous sound of my voice has made the wolves run away!"
"I suspect it was the sight of me that did it," replied the lion, "rather than the sound of your voice.

Inspired by: Fables of Aesop and Other Eminent Mythologists by Roger L'Estrange, 396.
Notes: This is Perry 151. In other versions of the story, the donkey sets all kinds of animals to flight with the sound of his voice, not just wolves.

Here is an illustration by Billinghurst:

~ 20. Death and the Donkey ~

Laura Gibbs · 20. Death and the Donkey

There was a donkey who led a miserable life, and after years of wretched labor, he finally implored Death to deliver him.
Death did come, but not with the deliverance that the donkey expected.
"My poor donkey," said Death, "I am here to take your life, and I also have bad news for you: after your death, the humans are going to take the skin from your dead body and make that skin into a drum. So, just as they beat you in life, so too they will beat you in death."
That was the fate of the poor donkey.

Inspired by: Fables of Aesop and Other Eminent Mythologists by Roger L'Estrange, 437.
Notes: This is Perry 164.

Here is an illustration from Steinhowel's Aesop:

~ 21. The Donkey in Winter ~

Laura Gibbs · 21. The Donkey in Winter

It was Winter, and the donkey longed for Spring, with fresh grass to eat and a bit of warmth.
But when Spring came, bringing fresh grass, there was so much toil and labor that it was worse than Winter.
The donkey longed for Summer, but the labor was even greater then and the weather was even hotter.
He began to long for Fall, but Fall brought harvest loads to carry and provisions to lay in before the snows arrived.
Then it was Winter, and once again the donkey longed for Spring, with some fresh grass and a bit of warmth.

Inspired by: Fables of Aesop and Other Eminent Mythologists by Roger L'Estrange, 317.
Notes: This fable is not part of the classical Aesop tradition; find out more here.

Here is an illustration by Bewick:

~ 22. The Two Donkeys ~

Laura Gibbs · 22. The Two Donkeys

Two donkeys were going to town, one carrying bags of oats, and the other, bags of money.
The donkey carrying money was adorned with all sorts of foppish frippery, including bells that went jingle-jangle as he walked.
The other donkey was as plain as the load he was carrying.
Bandits fell upon them, and they attacked the donkey with the money, stripping him of his cargo and his fine adornments, thrashing him cruelly, but they paid no attention to the donkey with the oats.
"What a fine thing it is," thought the humble donkey, "not to have anything worth robbing."

Inspired by: Fables of Aesop and Other Eminent Mythologists by Roger L'Estrange, 417.
Notes: This is Perry 491.

Here is an illustration by Grandville:

~ 23. The Donkey and the Icon ~

Laura Gibbs · 23. The Donkey and the Icon

There was a great religious procession, and a donkey was carrying a holy icon on the way to the church.
When the people saw the icon, they all fell to their knees in devotion.
"Behold!" the foolish donkey thought to himself. "The people are all falling to their knees and worshiping me… ME!"
As the donkey hee-hawed happily, the donkey-driver cracked his whip and laughed. "You are nothing more than a donkey. You were a donkey before I put the icon on your back, and you're still a donkey now," he said. "They're worshiping the icon; they're not worshiping you!"

Inspired by: Fables of Aesop and Other Eminent Mythologists by Roger L'Estrange, 487.
Notes: This is Perry 182.

Here is an illustration by Billinghurst:

~ 25. The Fox and the Dragon ~

Laura Gibbs · 25. The Fox and the Dragon

A fox digging in the ground found herself in a dragon's den filled with golden treasure.
"I beg your pardon," she said to the dragon. "I ended up here by accident, and I'll be on my way. Before I go, though, I'd like to know just what you plan to do with all this treasure."
"I have no use for the treasure," said the dragon, "but it is my fate to spend my life here guarding the treasure, night and day."
"Then you're a wretched creature indeed," replied the fox. "You do possess a treasure, but I envy you not."

Inspired by: Fables of Aesop and Other Eminent Mythologists by Roger L'Estrange, 475.
Notes: This is Perry 518.

Here is an illustration from a 17th-century edition of Phaedrus:

~ 38. The Fox and the Boar ~

Laura Gibbs · 38. The Fox and the Boar

A fox was strolling through the woods and saw a boar rubbing his tusks against a tree, back and forth, back and forth.
As always, the fox was curious. "What are you doing that for?" she asked the boar.
"I'm readying my weapons!" the boar replied. "The sharper my tusks, the more ready I'll be to fight."
The fox looked around. "But I don't see any enemies," she remarked.
"That's the idea exactly! I'm sharpening my tusks now," replied the boar, "because there will be no time to ready my weapons when the enemy arrives and the actual fighting begins."

Inspired by: Fables of Aesop and Other Eminent Mythologists by Roger L'Estrange, 149.
Notes: This is Perry 224.

Here is an illustration by S. R. Praeger:

~ 39. The Fox and the Rooster ~

Laura Gibbs · 39. The Fox and the Rooster

"Dear rooster," said the fox, "the beauty of your feathers dazzles me, as does the sound of your cock-a-doodle-doo. You are a magnificent creature indeed!"
The rooster beamed with pleasure, and the fox continued, "And you are a prophet of events to come, announcing the sun's arrival each dawn."
As the fox was speaking, he crept closer and closer to the rooster. Finally, he snatched the foolish bird in his teeth.
"You knew when the sun would rise this morning," the fox said, laughing, "but you failed to predict that I was going to have rooster for my supper tonight!"

Inspired by: Fables of Aesop and Other Eminent Mythologists by Roger L'Estrange, 424.
Notes: This fable is not part of the classical Aesop tradition; find out more here.

Here is an illustration by Grandville; it was not specifically for this fable, but it fits very well:

~ 40. The Fox Seeks an Eye Doctor ~

Laura Gibbs · 40. The Fox Seeks an Eye Doctor

The fox wanted to eat the rooster, so he lay down in the barnyard, groaning loudly to get the rooster's attention.
"Please, dear rooster," he cried, "remove this thorn that lodged in my eye when I crawled through a hedge."
"Dear fox," replied the rooster, suspecting trouble, "if I remove the thorn from the one eye, I might accidentally poke out your other eye. I'm not much of a doctor after all, but let me go fetch the watchdog. He'll know what to do!"
At the mention of the dog, the fox immediately recovered his strength and took off running.

Inspired by: Fables of Aesop and Other Eminent Mythologists by Roger L'Estrange, 432.
Notes: This fable is not part of the classical Aesop tradition; find out more here.

Here is an illustration from the French Roman de Renart by Pierre de Saint-Cloud.

~ 48. The Wolf Becomes a Monk ~

Laura Gibbs · 48. The Wolf Becomes a Monk

A wolf had grown old and couldn't hunt, so he decided to put on a monk's habit and go begging from door to door.
Sure enough, the disguise worked, and the wolf was eating pretty well.
He later ran into one of his fellow wolves.
"What are you doing in the robes of a monk?" asked the other wolf indignantly. "That's not how a wolf should live!"
The old wolf replied, "What do you expect me to do? My teeth are gone, and my tired old legs can't run anymore. I have to either get religion or prepare to starve."

Inspired by: Fables of Aesop and Other Eminent Mythologists by Roger L'Estrange, 436.
Notes: This fable is not part of the classical Aesop tradition; find out more here.

~ 49. The Wolf and the Porcupine ~

Laura Gibbs · 49. The Wolf and the Porcupine

A wolf came across a porcupine. He was a fierce-looking creature armed with darts, so the wolf kept his distance.
At the same time, the wolf was quite hungry, and the porcupine would make a very fine snack if only he would lay aside his darts.
"Dear porcupine," said the wolf, "don't you know that we animals are living at peace? It is bad manners for you to be going around armed, as if there were war between us."
The porcupine bristled. "I'm no fool," he replied. "When I see a wolf nearby, I am at war, not at peace."

Inspired by: Fables of Aesop and Other Eminent Mythologists by Roger L'Estrange, 320.
Notes: This fable is not part of the classical Aesop tradition, but compare the story of the fox who preached peace.

(porcupine)

~ 57. The Wolves and their Allies ~

Laura Gibbs · 57. The Wolves and their Allies

The wolves were ready to raid the sheep, if only they could get rid of the watchdogs.
They sought out the most wolf-like individuals among the dogs and said, "Surely we're cousins, close cousins perhaps. You look more like wolves than dogs! Why not come over to our side?"
By promising the dogs a share in the spoils, they lured them into the wolf pack.
The wolves were then able to easily defeat the rest of the watchdogs.
Next, the wolves killed their dog allies.
And then they feasted on the sheep, who were left without any protection at all.

Inspired by: Fables of Aesop and Other Eminent Mythologists by Roger L'Estrange, 394.
Notes: This is Perry 342.

~ 58. The Treacherous Sheepdog ~

Laura Gibbs · 58. The Treacherous Sheepdog

A shepherd had a special favorite among the dogs who guarded his sheep. This dog, however, would snatch lambs to eat, and even the occasional sheep.
The shepherd eventually discovered this dog was the culprit, so he seized the dog and planned to execute him.
"But wolves do far more damage than I," the dog whined. "The wolves are your worst enemies. Why punish me? "
"It's the business of wolves to kill the sheep, but you are supposed to be their guardian," he replied. "A wolf is a predator, but you, wretched dog, are worse, for you are a traitor!"

Inspired by: Fables of Aesop and Other Eminent Mythologists by Roger L'Estrange, 330.
Notes: This fable is not part of the classical Aesop tradition; find out more here.

Here is an illustration from a 19th-century Aesop:

~ 60. The Dogs and the River ~

Laura Gibbs · 60. The Dogs and the River

Some hungry dogs were roaming the countryside looking everywhere for something to eat.
One of the dogs saw an animal hide floating in the river, and he barked to his fellows, summoning them to come help.
"We're going to have to drink it!" said one of the dogs.
"Drink what?" asked another.
"We've got to drink the whole river!"
And so the dogs began drinking, lapping the water, gulping and guzzling in hopes of draining the river so that they could retrieve the hide.
Finally the dogs drank so much that they burst, and they never did get the hide.

Inspired by: Fables of Aesop and Other Eminent Mythologists by Roger L'Estrange, 420.
Notes: This is Perry 135.

Here is an illustration by Harrison Weir:

~ 61. The Dog without a House ~

Laura Gibbs · 61. The Dog without a House

A dog was about to deliver a litter, but she had no roof over her head.
She went to another dog and begged for help. "If you would just let me occupy your house while I deliver my pups, I'd be forever in your debt."
Feeling sorry for the expectant mother, the owner of the doghouse moved out, expecting to reclaim her home in a few months.
When she returned, however, the other dog snarled, and so did the puppies. "If you want your house back," she said, "you're going to have to contend with me and with my pups!"

Inspired by: Fables of Aesop and Other Eminent Mythologists by Roger L'Estrange, 323.
Notes: This is Perry 480.

Here is an illustration by Grandville (for La Fontaine's version):

~ 65. The Rabbit and the Sparrow ~

Laura Gibbs · 65. The Rabbit and the Sparrow

A sparrow was flitting from bush to bush one day when she saw an eagle swoop down from the sky, chasing a rabbit.
The rabbit zigged left, zagged right, running as fast as she could to escape the eagle, but finally the eagle seized the rabbit in his talons, and the rabbit squealed.
The sparrow laughed. "Where's your fancy footwork now, silly rabbit?" she said.
Then a hawk flew by and grabbed the sparrow.
The dying rabbit saw what happened. "There is some justice in the world," she thought. "The sparrow paid a price for her cruel words after all."

Inspired by: Fables of Aesop and Other Eminent Mythologists by Roger L'Estrange, 431.
Notes: This is Perry 473.

Here is an illustration from Croxall's Aesop:

~ 76. The King's Dancing Monkeys ~

Laura Gibbs · 76. The King's Dancing Monkeys

There was a king who built a school for dancing monkeys.
"Let them be educated in all the dances!" he proclaimed.
So the monkeys studied all the dances.
Finally the time came for the royal performance.
The king was delighted to see his monkeys dancing so beautifully, and the audience applauded every dance.
A joker in the crowd, however, decided to throw some nuts onto the stage. The monkeys went wild, forgetting all their dances as they scrambled to grab the nuts. Then the monkeys even started throwing nutshells at the audience.
That was the end of the dancing monkeys.

Inspired by: Fables of Aesop and Other Eminent Mythologists by Roger L'Estrange, 375.
Notes: This is Perry 463.

Here is an illustration by Arthur Rackham:

~ 78. The Kingdom of the Monkeys ~

Laura Gibbs · 78. The Kingdom of the Monkeys

Two friends, one truthful and one a liar, wandered into the Kingdom of the Monkeys.
Monkeys captured them and brought them to the Monkey-King.
"Behold my court!" said the Monkey-King. "Aren't we a magnificent sight?"
"The splendor of your court is dazzling," said the liar. "I've never seen anything so magnificent."
The Monkey-King beamed with pleasure.
"And what do you say?" he inquired, turning to the other man.
"Why, you're nothing but a monkey, and so are all your courtiers," he replied.
The Monkey-King shrieked with rage. "Kill him!" shouted the king.
Telling the truth isn't always the safest strategy.

Inspired by: Fables of Aesop and Other Eminent Mythologists by Roger L'Estrange, 413.
Notes: This is Perry 569.

Here is an illustration from Steinhowel's Aesop: