AESOP'S ECHOESIt is amazing how so many popular references and common senses are found here. Aesop finds his echoes throughout the high flying philosophers and through the earthy grandmothers, not only engrafted into the literature of the civilized world, but familiar as household words in daily conversation of peoples, across borders. It is all pervading. And to top it off, such great pleasure too.Wisdom, and simplicity, and entertainment - through unforgettable stories - what more could be asked?Aesop: The OriginsThe most famous of Greek poets, Aesop was born about the year 620 B.C., by birth a slave. He was owned by two masters in succession, and won his freedom from the latter, as a reward for his learning and wit.As a freedman in the ancient republics of Greece, Aesop now had the privilege and the permission to take an active interest in public affairs; and Aesop, raised himself to a position of high renown - a political ambassador of sorts. In his desire alike to instruct and to be instructed, he travelled through many countries. And in his discharge of his commissions, is said to have, by the narration of some of his wise fables, reconciled the inhabitants of those cities to the administration of their times.Here we can detect and understand some of the common themes that run through these fables - those of keeping to one’s appointed place/station, the utility of inherent strengths which might not be easily visible and of the perils of overreaching.These, and other, but still few, simple strands of wisdom is reinforced again and again in different situations - which is the essence of the craft of a fabulist. Aesop: The Fabulous FabulistThe Fable, like any Tale, will contain a short but real narrative; it will seek, like any Parable, to convey a hidden meaning, but by the skillful introduction of fictitious characters; and it will always keep in view, as its high prerogative, and inseparable attribute, the great purpose of instruction, and will necessarily seek to inculcate some moral maxim, social duty, or political truth.And yet, even when trying to realize profound human truths through itself, it so conceals its design under the disguise of fictitious characters, by clothing with speech the animals of the field, the birds of the air, the trees of the wood, or the beasts of the forest, that the reader shall receive advice without perceiving the presence of the adviser.Thus the superiority of the counsellor, which often renders counsel unpalatable, is kept out of view, and the lesson comes with the greater acceptance when the reader is led, unconsciously to himself, to have his sympathies enlisted in behalf of what is pure, honorable, and praiseworthy, and to have his indignation excited against what is low, ignoble, and unworthy. This format also required the fabulist to keep a unity of character throughout - The introduction of the animals as characters should be marked with an unexceptionable care and attention to their natural attributes, and to the qualities attributed to them by universal popular consent. The Fox should be always cunning, the Hare timid, the Lion bold, the Wolf cruel, the Bull strong, the Horse proud, and the Ass patient, even as they are made to depict the motives and passions of men.Aesop’s fables achieve this unity and consistency so throughly that now they have passed into popular consciousness. Indeed, we can even assert that these animals, as we know them today, were created in these Fables! Aesop: The CompanionAesop's Fables are valuable companions. These stories pack much distilled wisdom in them and can be employed with great effect. It is said that a few good stories are better moral equipment than the best tracts of philosophers.Even Socrates is mentioned by Plato as having employed his time while in prison, awaiting the return of the sacred ship from Delphos which was to be the signal of his death, in turning some of these fables into verse from what he had committed to memory over his long lifetime. Socrates, like Aesop, understood that we are all moralists, seeking the human judgements that inform ours, and other’s actions. But morality forced down by edict can be very forbidding. This forbidding notion of morality was what inspired the philosopher Bertrand Russell to remark that the Ten Commandments ought to come with the sort of rubric which is sometimes to be found on examination papers of ten questions: ‘Only six need be attempted’. It is noteworthy that Socrates tried to emulate in his own teaching method the technique of the great fabulist - of letting the listener arrive at his own conclusions, or at any rate, avoiding the biggest pitfall any teacher can fall into - of being perceived as a moral superior.In how Socrates shaped up as a teacher, we can very well see why the most earthy and yet the loftiest of philosophers considered Aesop’s fables to be masterpieces, a constant source of companionship and teaching - and also a manual on teaching well.We would be well served to do the same.
1001.tAesop’s Fables, Aesopusحکایتهای ازوپ - ازوپ (هرمس، زوار، اساطیر)ادبیاتبنا به گفته «هرودوت»، «ازوپ» برده‌ای از اهالی «سارد» بوده است. افسانه‌هایی تعریف کرده که منشأ تعداد بی شماری از امثال و حکم شده است. «ازوپ» دارای سیصد و چهار افسانه است. «ازوپ» در یونان غلامی زرخرید بوده که بعدها صاحبش او را آزاد کرد، و «دلفی»ها او را به قتل رساندند. «ازوپ» در سال‌های قرن ششم پیش از میلاد می‌زیسته، و با «کورش هخامنشی» هم دوره بوده است. داستان‌های او به اکثر زبان‌های دنیا ترجمه شده است. و يکی از آن افسانه ها..روبهی که آتش جوعش جان او به لب رسانده بود و پرده صبرش از هم گسلانده، خسته و درمانده به تاکی رسید که انگورهای سیاه و رسیده از شاخه‌های آن آویخته بود و بیتابی بر دل روباه ریخته. خواست تا خوشه‌ای چیند، و به تناول بنشیند. به هر حیلتی دست یازید، کارگر نیفتاد. درخت به غایت بلند بود، و روبه به نهایت کوتاه. عاقبت مستأصل گشت. پس راه پیش گرفت، و در آن حال استیصال، تسکین خاطر مسکین خود را می‌گفت: «انگورها، چنانکه گمان می‌بردم، شیرین نبودند». ا. شربیانی
What do You think about Aesop's Fables (2003)?
What I liked about revisiting Aesop's Fables is that the fables often tickle my funny bone. The idea of animals of various species interacting with one another as if they were humans is often pretty amusing. Each of the fables has a little message to convey, and sometimes the messages are wise and practical, but other times they are questionable and even offer poor, self-limiting advice. Often these messages are of the simplistic variety along the lines of "never bite off more than you can chew". One could as easily write a fable containing the message, "Dream big or accept the crumb off the table in life's banquet". I assume the messages in these little tales were quite relevant for the times in which they were written, but less so in our own times and world. That does not mean the book is not delightful; I thoroughly enjoyed it, although it thankfully does not overstay its welcome in length. How many lions and foxes and "asses" need one read about as they pay a variety of prices, not the least of which is often death, for their lapses in judgment, their pride, and their folly? The fables are mostly very short, so this is a swift read and requires little in the way of intellectual work or even more than the most superficial of pondering. It differs from Grimm's in that their tales were sometimes dark and even gory. Most of the animals in this collection that die as a result of their errors do so with a sort of shrug and a brief reflection along the lines of "OK...I really screwed up and I had that coming. Goodby cruel world..."It's fun, and sometimes funny stuff. Who can resist a story in which a mouse convinces a lion to spare his life, then ends up saving the lion's life? Lots of LOL moments abound so read this if you're in the mood for something light and occasionally wise, if rarely "profound".
—Steven
Read this book and remember all the life lessons you learned as a little kid and should remember as an adult:Hard work pays off (Farmer and his Sons); don’t lie (Boy and the Wolf); there is a time for work and a time for play (Ant and Grasshopper); some people can’t change (Wolf and the Shepherd); ability is not judged by size (Mouse and the Lion); greed is bad (Goose that Laid the Golden Egg); careful the company you keep (Farmer and the Stork); things get less scary with time (Fox and the Lion); it is easier to persuade than to force (Wind and the Sun); simple things are sometimes better (Country Mouse and City Mouse); and slow and steady wins the race (Tortoise and the Hare).
—Steven
Aesop's fables are still around today because of their message, not the storytelling quality. They translate well into the digital age not least as a tool in powerpoint presentations to distract people from the dubiousness of your research, and in backing up tenuous arguments on internet forums.Aesop's comfort with doling out seemingly contradictory morals from story to story never fails to reassure me, befitting the messy world we live in. There are several handy resources available which completely fail to underline this point, such as http://www.aesopfables.com/aesopsel.html
—Lindsay
