Reading Notes: Aesop's Fables (Jacobs), Part A

Fables are always so fun to read. They are short and sweet, yet they tell a meaningful lesson! There were so many that I liked, but I chose two to write notes on.

1) The Four Oxen and the Lion by Joseph Jacobs (1894)
The four oxen had horns, which scared the lion. However, without those horns, the lion could eat the oxen. Thus, the oxen teamed up and stood in a circle so that a horn would always be facing the outside, protecting all the oxen. One day, the oxen got into a fight and separated into their own corners of the field. Thus, the lion caught them one by one and in the end, killed them all.
"United we stand, divided we fall."

-Everyone knows the famous split of the band One Direction. The retelling could possibly connect to how "strong" this band was. The lion could be an evil competitor in the music world. After the band split up because of an argument, slowly one by one of the boys became poor, instead of being dead like in the fable.

(Photo of a lion cub by IanZA: Pixabay)

2) The Fox and the Stork by Joseph Jacobs (1894)

The fox invited the stork over for dinner and served dinner in a shallow bowl. The stork could not eat it due to his long beak, while the fox drank it all up. At the end, the fox apologized for the soup, seeing that the stork didn't eat any. The stork then invited the fox back for dinner, but this time, he served dinner in a jar with a long, narrow neck. This time around, the fox could not eat; he could only lick the outside of the jar. However, this time, the stork did not apologize for his behavior. 

"One bad turn deserves another."

- I might attempt to do a limerick and retell this story in my own words. I like how this story is already told. This time, instead of changing the story, I am going to change the organization/structure of the story. 

(Photo of a fox with closed eyes: Flickr)