Fables and Morals
What are fables?
Are they the same as fairytales?
What’s their purpose?
Are they found in every culture?
y
Early form of story telling
Believed to be originated in India
Aesop – Greek Slave, 620 B.C.
Some things you should know about Fables…
AESOP
Credited for most of the known fables heard today.
His fables include “The Ant and the Grasshopper,” and “The Lion and the Wolf.”
Short stories
What are some characteristics of fables?
Features animals, plants & forces of nature with human qualities
Handed down generation after generation
Fables teach a lesson, can relate to everyone, and connects us with other cultures.
Which of these are characteristics of fables?
A) Human GodsB) Animals with human characteristicsC) Happy endingsD) All of the above
So what are fairy tales?Start with “Once upon a time”
Setting in a castle, forest or town
Story has good/evil characters
Fairy Tales cont.
Many characters are animals or royalty
Stories have magic
Has the numbers 3 or 7 in it
Story has a problem
Problem in story is solved
Good wins over evil
A Fairy Tale also….
Which one is not a characteristic of a fairytale?
A) Has the numbers 3 and 7B) Once upon a timeC) Good wins over EvilD) Teaches a lesson
How are fables and fairy tales the same?
Handed down from generation to generation
Fictional stories – not true
Similarities: Fables &Fairy Tales
• Connect us with different cultures
• For all ages
DifferencesFables
Characters: Animals that act like humans
Teaches a lesson
Fairy TalesCharacters: Royalty
Good vs. Evil
Fables of Different cultures
Involve animals found in that culture
Reflects cultural beliefs
Fable: The Lion and the Mouse
A mouse was running up and down a lion’s face
The lion woke up and was about to eat him
The mouse begged the lion to let him live
The Lion & the Mouse (cont.)
• The mouse made a deal with Lion
• If Lion let him go, the mouse would repay him one day, but the lion started to laugh at the mouse.
• Soon after, Lion was trapped in a net.
Lion and Mouse (cont.)
The mouse heard the lion’s roars. Running to him, it nibbled through the net, freeing the lion.Lion realized that mouse could help him.
MORAL: Little friends may prove great friends
Fable: The Tortoise and the Hare
• The hare laughed at the tortoise’s short feet and slow pace.
• The tortoise challenged him to a race
• The hare agreed
Tortoise and the Hare
• The tortoise never stopped, he went slow and steady the whole way
• The hare thought he had time and took a nap
• He finally woke up, and rushed to the finish line
Tortoise and the Hare
MORAL: Don’t rush into things
Fables can have more than one lesson.
Another lesson for the tortoise and the Hare is “Slow and Steady wins the race”
The Poor Ugly Hippo• African Fable
• San people – Tribe in Africa
• They thought the hippo was created last
The Poor Ugly HippoHippo was embarrassed because he thought he was fat & ugly
He begged the Creator to let him live in the waterThe Creator said no – he would eat all the fish
The Poor Ugly HippoThe hippo promised to eat nothing in water
But the Creator said no, so the hippo continued begging …
Finally they made an agreement….
The Poor Ugly HippoHippos could live in water only if they came out every day to leave their dung
The animals would search it for fish bones
This last moral was reflective of the African culture
They used an animal native to their country
Animals Used in FablesLion – Strength, Big EgoDonkey- stupid
Fox – Sly• Hawk: tyrannical
Animals Used in Fables
Wolf – Greed, Dishonest Fly- wise
Hen- conceitedLamb – Shyness
Using Fables and their MoralsLiteracy
The Frog and the Ox
A young frog, amazed at the huge size of an ox, rushed to tell her father about the monster. The father frog, trying to impress his child, puffed himself up to look like the ox. The young frog said it was much bigger. Again the father puffed himself up. The young frog insisted the monster was even bigger. The father puffed and puffed - and burst!
Match the Moral to the Fable
.Persuasion
is better than force.
Make hay while the
sun shines.
Small friends can be powerful
allies.
Beauty is in the eye of
the beholder.
Don’t just follow the
crowd.
Liars may give
themselves away.
Pride can be costly.Sometimes
we do not see our own strengths.
The Monkey and the DolphinA monkey fell from a ship and was rescued by a dolphin. The dolphin asked if he lived nearby. The monkey lied and said that he did. “Do you know Seriphos?” asked the dolphin. The monkey, thinking Seriphos was a person’s name, boasted that it was his best friend. As Seriphos was a town, the dolphin knew the monkey was lying, so he dived, leaving him to swim to shore.
Match the Moral to the Fable
.Persuasion
is better than force.
Make hay while the
sun shines.
Small friends can be powerful
allies.
Beauty is in the eye of
the beholder.
Don’t just follow the
crowd.
Liars may give
themselves away.
Pride can be costly.Sometimes
we do not see our own strengths.
The Fox and the Old Lion
An old lion sent out word that he was ill and said that he would like the animals and birds to visit him. Most went but fox did not. Finally the lion sent for him, asking why he had not come to see him. The clever fox replied, “I had planned to, but I noticed that although many tracks led into your cave, none led out.”
Match the Moral to the Fable
.Persuasion
is better than force.
Make hay while the
sun shines.
Small friends can be powerful
allies.
Beauty is in the eye of
the beholder.
Don’t just follow the
crowd.
Liars may give
themselves away.
Pride can be costly.Sometimes
we do not see our own strengths.