The Ant and the Grasshopper

Our next story is a fable. A fable is usually a very short story with animals as characters and a moral at the end. An apologue is a short story with a moral. Legends are short stories about fantastic characters. The Greek word for legend is "myth". Sure you know some apologues or legends or myths.

This kind of stories are typical at school because they suppose you learn something from them.

But the question is this: Is the moral from fables and apologues useful, or correct, all the times? You have an answer in the story by Maugham.

More themes you can meditate related to this story are for exemple: Is doing the right think always rewarded? Does doing the right think make you happy?

THE GRASSHOPPER AND THE ANT.

A Grasshopper gay

Sang the summer away,

And found herself poor

By the winter's first roar.

Of meat or of bread,

Not a morsel she had!

So a begging she went,

To her neighbour the ant,

For the loan of some wheat,

Which would serve her to eat,

Till the season came round.

'I will pay you,' she saith,

'On an animal's faith,

Double weight in the pound

Ere the harvest be bound.'

The ant is a friend

(And here she might mend)

Little given to lend.

'How spent you the summer?'

Quoth she, looking shame

At the borrowing dame.

'Night and day to each comer

I sang, if you please.'

'You sang! I'm at ease;

For 'tis plain at a glance,

Now, ma'am, you must dance.'

                                                                                  Jean de la Fontaine

Text and activities:

https://sites.google.com/site/homereadinglessons/the-ant-and-the-grasshopper

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Another fable is this one:

THE FOX AND THE CROW

One morning a Fox was in search of a bite to eat and he saw a Crow on a branch of a tree overhead with a bit of cheese in her beak.

Up he trotted to the foot of the tree in which the Crow was sitting, and looking up admiringly, he cried, "Good-morning, beautiful creature!"

The Crow watched the Fox suspiciously. But she kept her beak tightly closed on the cheese and did not return his greeting.

"What a charming creature you are!" said the Fox. "How your feathers shine! What a beautiful form and what splendid wings you have! Such a wonderful bird should have a very lovely voice, since everything else about her is so perfect. Could you sing just one song, I'm sure you'll be the Queen of Birds."

Listening to these flattering words, the Crow forgot all her suspicion, and also her breakfast. She wanted very much to be called Queen of Birds.

So she opened her beak wide to utter her loudest caw, and down fell the cheese straight into the Fox's open mouth.

"Thank you," said Master Fox sweetly, as he walked off. "Though it is cracked, you have a voice sure enough. But what about your wits?"

Flatterers live at the expense of those who listen to them.

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I think you can find another more positive lesson for this fable. What is it?

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