The Wolf and the Lamb
Encyclopedia
The Wolf and the Lamb is a well known fable of Aesop
and is numbered 155 in the Perry Index
. There are several variant stories of tyrannical injustice in which a victim is falsely accused and killed despite a reasonable defence.
A variant story attributed to Aesop also exists in Greek sources. This is the fable of the cock and the cat, which is separately numbered 16 in the Perry Index. Seeking a reasonable pretext to kill the cock, the cat accuses it of waking people early in the morning and then of incest with its sisters and daughters. In both cases the cock answers that humanity benefits by its activities. But the cat ends the argument by remarking that it is now her breakfast time and 'Cats don't live upon Dialogues'. Underlying both these fables there is the Latin proverb, variously expressed, that 'an empty belly has no ears' or, as the Spanish equivalent has it, Lobo hambriento no tiene asiento (a hungry wolf doesn't hang about).
The fable also has Eastern analogues. One of these is the Buddhist Dipi Jataka
in which the protagonists are a panther and a goat. The goat has strayed into the presence of a panther and tries to avert its fate by greeting the predator politely. It is accused of treading on his tail and then of scaring off his prey, for which crime it is made to substitute. A similar story involving birds is found among Bidpai's Persian fables as "The Partridge and the Hawk". The unjust accusation there is that the partridge is taking up all the shade, leaving the hawk out in the hot sun. When the partridge points out that it is midnight, it is killed by the hawk for contradicting.
in his Moral Fables a picture of widespread social breakdown is depicted. The Lamb appeals to natural law, to scripture, and to statutory law, and is answered with perversions of all these by the Wolf. Then Henryson enters in his own person and comments that there are three kinds of contemporary wolf who oppress the poor. The first are dishonest lawyers, the second are landowners intent on extending their estates, and the third are aristocrats who exploit their tenants.
A political application of the fable to international relations is the 1893 Punch
cartoon published at the time Britain and France were both considering extending their colonial influence into Thailand
and looking for excuses. A wolf dressed in the uniform of the French army is shown eyeing the Thai lamb across the Mekong
river. More recently the fable has been applied to the 2003 US invasion of Iraq. The presence of this fable in the borders of the Bayeux Tapestry
has suggested that a similar political comment is being made through it by the English embroiderers to express their dissent and horror at the Norman invasion of Britain.
's version of the fable include Charles Lecocq's in Six Fables de Jean de la Fontaine for voice and piano and André Caplet
's in Trois Fables de Jean de la Fontaine, again for voice and piano. Translated into Catalan, it is part of Xavier Benguerel i Godó’s Siete Fabulas de La Fontaine for recitation with orchestral accompaniment.
The fable has also figured on two French stamps. First was a 1938 portrait of La Fontaine with the tale illustrated in a panel below it. There was also a six-stamp strip issued in 1995 to commemorate the third centenary of La Fontaine's death; here the lamb is shown as startled by the wolf's reflection in the water. In 1977 Burundi
issued a four-stamp block of fables where the designs are based on Gustave Doré
's illustrations, of which this fable is one.
Aesop's Fables
Aesop's Fables or the Aesopica are a collection of fables credited to Aesop, a slave and story-teller believed to have lived in ancient Greece between 620 and 560 BCE. The fables remain a popular choice for moral education of children today...
and is numbered 155 in the Perry Index
Perry Index
The Perry Index is a widely-used index of "Aesop's Fables" or "Aesopica", the fables credited to Aesop, the story-teller who lived in ancient Greece between 620 and 560 BC...
. There are several variant stories of tyrannical injustice in which a victim is falsely accused and killed despite a reasonable defence.
The fable and its variants
A wolf comes upon a lamb and, in order to justify taking its life, accuses it of various misdemeanours, all of which the lamb proves to be impossible. Losing patience, it says the offences must have been committed by someone else in the family and that it does not propose to delay its meal by enquiring any further about the matter. The morals drawn are that the tyrant can always find an excuse for his tyranny and that the unjust will not listen to the reasoning of the innocent.A variant story attributed to Aesop also exists in Greek sources. This is the fable of the cock and the cat, which is separately numbered 16 in the Perry Index. Seeking a reasonable pretext to kill the cock, the cat accuses it of waking people early in the morning and then of incest with its sisters and daughters. In both cases the cock answers that humanity benefits by its activities. But the cat ends the argument by remarking that it is now her breakfast time and 'Cats don't live upon Dialogues'. Underlying both these fables there is the Latin proverb, variously expressed, that 'an empty belly has no ears' or, as the Spanish equivalent has it, Lobo hambriento no tiene asiento (a hungry wolf doesn't hang about).
The fable also has Eastern analogues. One of these is the Buddhist Dipi Jataka
Jataka
The Jātakas refer to a voluminous body of literature native to India concerning the previous births of the Buddha....
in which the protagonists are a panther and a goat. The goat has strayed into the presence of a panther and tries to avert its fate by greeting the predator politely. It is accused of treading on his tail and then of scaring off his prey, for which crime it is made to substitute. A similar story involving birds is found among Bidpai's Persian fables as "The Partridge and the Hawk". The unjust accusation there is that the partridge is taking up all the shade, leaving the hawk out in the hot sun. When the partridge points out that it is midnight, it is killed by the hawk for contradicting.
Moral applications
Down the centuries the various interpreters of the fable have applied it to the injustices of their time. In the extended treatment by the 15th century Scottish poet Robert HenrysonRobert Henryson
Robert Henryson was a poet who flourished in Scotland in the period c. 1460–1500. Counted among the Scots makars, he lived in the royal burgh of Dunfermline and is a distinctive voice in the Northern Renaissance at a time when the culture was on a cusp between medieval and renaissance sensibilities...
in his Moral Fables a picture of widespread social breakdown is depicted. The Lamb appeals to natural law, to scripture, and to statutory law, and is answered with perversions of all these by the Wolf. Then Henryson enters in his own person and comments that there are three kinds of contemporary wolf who oppress the poor. The first are dishonest lawyers, the second are landowners intent on extending their estates, and the third are aristocrats who exploit their tenants.
A political application of the fable to international relations is the 1893 Punch
Punch (magazine)
Punch, or the London Charivari was a British weekly magazine of humour and satire established in 1841 by Henry Mayhew and engraver Ebenezer Landells. Historically, it was most influential in the 1840s and 50s, when it helped to coin the term "cartoon" in its modern sense as a humorous illustration...
cartoon published at the time Britain and France were both considering extending their colonial influence into Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
and looking for excuses. A wolf dressed in the uniform of the French army is shown eyeing the Thai lamb across the Mekong
Mekong
The Mekong is a river that runs through China, Burma, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. It is the world's 10th-longest river and the 7th-longest in Asia. Its estimated length is , and it drains an area of , discharging of water annually....
river. More recently the fable has been applied to the 2003 US invasion of Iraq. The presence of this fable in the borders of the Bayeux Tapestry
Bayeux Tapestry
The Bayeux Tapestry is an embroidered cloth—not an actual tapestry—nearly long, which depicts the events leading up to the Norman conquest of England concerning William, Duke of Normandy and Harold, Earl of Wessex, later King of England, and culminating in the Battle of Hastings...
has suggested that a similar political comment is being made through it by the English embroiderers to express their dissent and horror at the Norman invasion of Britain.
Artistic Applications
French settings of Jean de la FontaineJean de La Fontaine
Jean de La Fontaine was the most famous French fabulist and one of the most widely read French poets of the 17th century. He is known above all for his Fables, which provided a model for subsequent fabulists across Europe and numerous alternative versions in France, and in French regional...
's version of the fable include Charles Lecocq's in Six Fables de Jean de la Fontaine for voice and piano and André Caplet
André Caplet
André Caplet was a French composer and conductor now known primarily through his orchestrations of works by Claude Debussy.-Biography:...
's in Trois Fables de Jean de la Fontaine, again for voice and piano. Translated into Catalan, it is part of Xavier Benguerel i Godó’s Siete Fabulas de La Fontaine for recitation with orchestral accompaniment.
The fable has also figured on two French stamps. First was a 1938 portrait of La Fontaine with the tale illustrated in a panel below it. There was also a six-stamp strip issued in 1995 to commemorate the third centenary of La Fontaine's death; here the lamb is shown as startled by the wolf's reflection in the water. In 1977 Burundi
Burundi
Burundi , officially the Republic of Burundi , is a landlocked country in the Great Lakes region of Eastern Africa bordered by Rwanda to the north, Tanzania to the east and south, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west. Its capital is Bujumbura...
issued a four-stamp block of fables where the designs are based on Gustave Doré
Gustave Doré
Paul Gustave Doré was a French artist, engraver, illustrator and sculptor. Doré worked primarily with wood engraving and steel engraving.-Biography:...
's illustrations, of which this fable is one.
External links
- "The Wolf and the Lamb", book illustrations
- "The Cat and the Cock", book illustrations