Fables and Themes *Read the following fables and answer the questions that follow.
The Ant and the Grasshopper In a field one summer's day a Grasshopper was hopping about, chirping and singing to its heart's content. An Ant passed by, bearing along with great toil an ear of corn he was taking to the nest. "Why not come and chat with me," said the Grasshopper, "instead of toiling and moiling in that way?" "I am helping to lay up food for the winter," said the Ant, "and recommend you to do the same." "Why bother about winter?" said the Grasshopper; we have got plenty of food at present." But the Ant went on its way and continued its toil. When the winter came the Grasshopper had no food and found itself dying of hunger, while it saw the ants distributing every day corn and grain from the stores they had collected in the summer. Then the Grasshopper knew. Question: A theme present in this fable is that you should first be prepared then find time to play. Describe how the the grasshopper illustrated this theme. Cite two pieces of textual evidence for support. ANSWER: In the story, the grasshopper illustrates the theme of First be prepared, then find time o play. The Ant is the character who is preparing for the winter by storing up food while the rasshopper is playing around. The grasshopper says he doesn t need to worry with winter because he as enough food right now. However, not thinking about the future harms the grasshopper later when inter comes and he has run out of food. He sees the ants, who have enough food, and then he realizes hat he should have prepared for winter instead of playing.
The Hare and the Frogs The Hares were so persecuted by the other beasts that they did not know where to go. As soon as they saw a single animal approach them, off they used to run. One day they saw a troop of wild Horses stampeding about, and in quite a panic all the Hares scuttled off to a nearby lake, determined to drown themselves rather than live in such a continual state of fear. But just as they got near the bank of the lake, a troop of Frogs, frightened in their turn by the approach of the Hares scuttled off, and jumped into the water. "Truly," said one of the Hares, "things are not so bad as they seem. Question: In this fable, the hares were so afraid of other animals that they were willing to die than to live in a state of fear. After running from a troop of wild horses, they encountered a troop of frightened frogs near the bank of a lake who jumped in the lake. What does this event teach the hares? Cite two pieces of textual evidence to support your answer. ANSWER: Encountering the frogs who jump in the lake out of fear for the hares teaches the hares that sometimes when things seem horrible, they really aren t so bad. The hares were so afraid of the other animals, they couldn t live with the fear and wanted to die. However, when they saw that smaller animals like the frogs were scared of them, they realized that their fear of the horses wasn t really so bad they needed to drown themselves.
The Crow and the Pitcher A CROW perishing with thirst saw a pitcher, and hoping to find water, flew to it with delight. When he reached it, he discovered to his grief that it contained so little water that he could not possibly get at it. He tried everything he could think of to reach the water, but all his efforts were in vain. At last he collected as many stones as he could carry and dropped them one by one with his beak into the pitcher, until he brought the water within his reach and thus saved his life. Question: A theme presented in this fable is that if at first you don t succeed, you should try and try again. Describe how the crow s actions in this story illustrate this theme. Cite two pieces of textual evidence to support your answer. ANSWER: In the story, the crow s actions illustrate the theme of If at first you don t succeed, try and try again. The crow is very thirsty yet cannot reach the small amount of water in the pitcher he finds. Instead of giving up, he tries everything he could to reach the water. Finally he devises a solution to drop stones in the water to raise the water level. Then he is able to drink and relieve his thirst. This shows me that if a first attempt at a goal is not successful, I shouldn t give up. Instead, I should find other ways to reach my goal. I should continue trying many times until I finally accomplish my goal.
The Fox and the Goat A FOX one day fell into a deep well and could find no means of escape. A Goat, overcome with thirst, came to the same well, and seeing the Fox, inquired if the water was good. Concealing his sad plight under a merry guise, the Fox indulged in a lavish praise of the water, saying it was excellent beyond measure, and encouraging him to descend. The Goat, mindful only of his thirst, thoughtlessly jumped down, but just as he drank, the Fox informed him of the difficulty they were both in and suggested a scheme for their common escape. If, said he, you will place your forefeet upon the wall and bend your head, I will run up your back and escape, and will help you out afterwards. The Goat readily assented and the Fox leaped upon his back. Steadying himself with the Goat s horns, he safely reached the mouth of the well and made off as fast as he could. When the Goat upbraided him for breaking his promise, he turned around and cried out, You foolish old fellow! If you had as many brains in your head as you have hairs in your beard, you would never have gone down before you had inspected the way up, nor have exposed yourself to dangers from which you had no means of escape. Question: A theme presented in this story is that you should think things through before making a decision. Don t be impulsive. Which event in the story caused the goat to learn this lesson? Explain your response. ANSWER: The goat learns the lesson of Think things through before making a decision at the end when the fox leaps upon his back and escapes the well while leaving the goat trapped inside. The goat was more focused on his thirst than he was on the dangers of jumping into the well. When the fox suggested the goat help him escape, the goat didn t think of what would happen to him after the goat escaped. The goat didn t think ahead at all, and he didn t realize the dangers of this until he was left all alone in the well after the fox escaped.
The Goose with the Golden Egg One day a monkey went to the nest of his Goose and found there an egg all yellow and glittering. When he took it up it was as heavy as lead and he was going to throw it away, because he thought a trick had been played upon him. But, on second thought, he took it home and soon found to his delight that it was an egg of pure gold. Every morning the same thing occurred, and he soon became rich by selling his eggs. As he grew rich he grew greedy; and thinking to get at once all the gold the Goose could give, he killed it and opened it only to find nothing. Question: In this fable, the monkey becomes very greedy with his unique goose. How does the monkey s greed eventually lead him to negative consequences? Answer: In this fable, the monkey s greed leads him to negative consequences. In the story, the monkey becomes rich by selling the golden eggs he stole from a goose. He is so excited about his riches, he decides to kill the goose to steal all its golden riches. However, when he opens the goose, there is nothing there. This shows me that greed leads to negative consequences and destruction because the monkey s greed led him to kill the innocent goose, and he gained nothing.