Fabulas de ESOPO

Aesop was a genius of ancient times, however, his legacy still remains. With his fables many generations have been formed, because his teachings are universal and have managed to transmit important values ​​in a few words. For this reason, if he lives with a child, it is not a bad idea to know certain fables, because, at some point, they will be necessary.

Aesop was an ancient Greek fabulist genius. He was born around the year 600 BC and died approximately in the year 564 BC. However, despite the fact that millennia have passed since the creation of his works, and that he lived only a short time, his legacy has been so important that the fables that characterized in ancient times are still being told from generation to generation.

In order to be universal children’s fables that are maintained over time, they have had to go through slight changes and adaptations. However, even if the story changes a little from one language to another, the morals for children have remained intact.

Before continuing with the topic, it is first necessary to determine what a fable is and, starting from there, we can talk a little more about which are the 13 popular fables of Aesop that are best known in the world; and how telling them to children can be a way of teaching values ​​and skills, without the need for an educational toy.

The world of fables for children

A fable is a short story or short story, which is written in prose or verse and whose objective is to leave a final moral. This can be for educational purposes or to serve as a social critique.

Most of the time, the main characters are animals or other animated beings, but people can also interact in the story.

Aesop, in particular, preferred to use animals and exploit certain characteristics of each creature. Perhaps that was what made cautionary tales of him so popular.

1. The grasshopper and the ant

Trying hard allows you to enjoy the rewards at the end of the day, however, if you decide to be lazy, then you will not achieve anything. This is the message that is expressed in this story by Aesop, whose moral could be summed up as: Do not leave for tomorrow what you can do today, because you could run out of time to do it.

2. The wolf in sheep’s clothing

The wolf thought he had a good idea by disguising himself as a lamb for the farmer to take to the stable so he could eat the flock. However, out of cheating, the farmer, believing it to be a sheep, took it for dinner.

In this interesting story it becomes clear that no matter how good a lie seems, it will always have consequences and bring problems.

3. The Hare and the Tortoise

This is probably Aesop’s best-known fable, as it teaches how perseverance can often defeat talent that doesn’t make an effort.

All of this is perfectly illustrated in a race between a smug hare and a willful tortoise, to give children a valuable and easy-to-understand lesson.

4. The goose that lays the golden eggs

Greed can make us fail to see what we have and always want much more. This is the case of the peasant who ends up killing his hen to obtain more than the golden egg that the animal gave him daily, leaving him with nothing due to his blind ambition. The moral of the story is to value what we have.

5. The Shepherd and the Wolf

With this fable, children will learn that if they tell many lies, no one will believe them when they tell the truth. This is what happened to the shepherd who, after shouting “Wolf” so many times while he was playing, no one believed him when a wolf actually came to his flock.

6. The Ant and the Dove

This is one of the most suitable short fables with a moral if you want to teach a child the value of helping others. It tells the story of a dove who saves a little ant from drowning, and then, to repay her good deed, the ant saved the dove from a hunter.

7. The Milkmaid

This fable by Aesop tells that a milkmaid had gone to the market to sell her product, but while thinking about everything she would do with the money she earned, she did not see a stone that made her trip and throw all the liquid. This story teaches the importance of always staying focused and, before thinking about what we will have, we must value what we have.

8. The Lion and the Mouse

Sometimes we can underestimate certain people, however, they can end up surprising us. This is the case of the lion who judged the mouse by its size and ended up being saved by the little rodent when he needed it. Aesop teaches us to value everyone, no matter who they are and what they look like.

9. The Fox and the Crow

A crow that was eating a piece of cheese was found by a fox, which was very hungry. To distract him, the fox began to compliment him on his feathers and singing, causing the smug crow to teach her his gifts. However, he was not so smart to deduce his intentions and he lost his cheese.

Always remember that if someone flatters you for no reason, they surely have bad intentions.

10. The horse and the donkey

When the donkey asked the horse for help with the load, the latter, feeling superior, refused. However, when the donkey collapsed, the peasant gave the entire load to the horse, including the other animal.

If you help others, you will help yourself and the horse learned this by force.

11. The Fox and the Stork

When the stork went to eat at the fox’s house, he was surprised that she served him soup in a flat plate, which prevented him from eating well. Therefore, when the fox came to visit, the stork served her a stew in a tall pot, paying her with the same coin.

Aesop was clever with this fable, teaching children to respect others and not do what they don’t like to be done to them.

12. The Raven and the Pitcher

A very thirsty crow saw a tall pitcher filled with water. He tried to use his beak to drink and also his paws, but he couldn’t. However, the teaching that Aesop leaves us is that, when there is need, ingenuity develops, because soon the crow filled the jar with pebbles so that the water rose and thus quenched its thirst.

13. The cat bell

Some mice, living in fear because of a cat, decided to create a plan to put a bell on it and hear it come. However, although everyone was excited about the plan, no one dared to do it.

With these simple words, Aesop shows us that words without facts are worth nothing . Easy it is to say, but difficult it is to fulfill.

These are some of Aesop’s best-known fables and, despite being short, each of them will serve to instill values ​​in the little ones in an entertaining and easy-to-understand way.