When I was in 5th grade we had to base a project on an Aesop Fable. I was assigned one which had something to do with a dancing frog. That's all I remember; that, and cutting my finger on a pairing knife when constructing my card board 'cineramic story-teller'. (I ran my finger down the blade to show my brother how blunt it was. Little did I realise that my mum had just sharpened it.) Strange how certain things stay with you.
Everyone probably knows a few Aesop fables. They're over 2000 years old, so it's inevitable (The Hare and the Tortoise anyone?) I was surprised by how many stories sounded familiar. There's one in particular that I remember quite vividly from my childhood which, in the spirit of storytelling, I though I'd share with you. You too may well recognise this, but I'm going to share it anyway!
The Wind and the Sun
The wind and the sun once had an argument as to which was the stronger of the two, and they agreed to settle the issue by holding a contest: whoever could make a traveler take off his coat first would be recognized as the most powerful. The wind began and blew with all his might until he stirred up a blast, cold and fierce as an Alaskan storm. The stronger he blew, however, the tighter the traveler wrapped his coat around him and clasped it with his hands. Then the sun broke out, and with his welcome beams he dispersed the clouds and the cold. The traveler felt the sudden warmth, and as the sun shone brighter and brighter, he sat down, overcome by the heat, and threw his coat on the ground.
Thus the sun was declared the winner, and ever since then, persuasion has been held in higher esteem than force. Indeed, sunshine of a kind and gentle manner will sooner open a poor man's heart than all the threats and force of blustering authority.
The wind and the sun once had an argument as to which was the stronger of the two, and they agreed to settle the issue by holding a contest: whoever could make a traveler take off his coat first would be recognized as the most powerful. The wind began and blew with all his might until he stirred up a blast, cold and fierce as an Alaskan storm. The stronger he blew, however, the tighter the traveler wrapped his coat around him and clasped it with his hands. Then the sun broke out, and with his welcome beams he dispersed the clouds and the cold. The traveler felt the sudden warmth, and as the sun shone brighter and brighter, he sat down, overcome by the heat, and threw his coat on the ground.
Thus the sun was declared the winner, and ever since then, persuasion has been held in higher esteem than force. Indeed, sunshine of a kind and gentle manner will sooner open a poor man's heart than all the threats and force of blustering authority.
I love the stories because they all have some wise moral at the end - which can sometimes even be a little sinister and shocking.
I still haven't found the story about the dancing frog. Plenty of stories about frogs, but none of them seem to dance. I'll let you know when I find it.
I still haven't found the story about the dancing frog. Plenty of stories about frogs, but none of them seem to dance. I'll let you know when I find it.
4 comments:
This is such a coincidence that you post this! This past week, Tyler has been studying about fables. One of their assignments was to create a fable of their own. Watch my blog as I intend to publish it!
In my storytelling class, we're reading and telling folk tales and fairy tales. I'll be telling my first one Monday night. Cool that you're in the storytelling frame of mind too. Awesome.
I was reading Hans Anderson's stories, and it's amazing how violent and a little scary they were. Little Mermaid is pretty grizzly, especially compared to the saccharine Disney version.
By the way, what the hell were you doing using a paring knife to cut cardboard with?!
I was trying to cut small circles to slot a couple of cardboard tubes into and needed a small blade. I think it's all we had. Not very clever, I have to admit.:(
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