Reading Notes- Aesop's (Winter) Fables- Part A&B
Reading A-
For my Week 4 readings, I decided to revisit Aesop’s Fables,
specifically the Winter Tales. Instead of just reading the stories for pleasure
this time, however, I am taking a closer look at the use of certain animals in
each of the stories. Before, I just assumed that these fables assigned
characteristics to the animals on a whim, but it is clear to me now that these
characteristics existed long before the fables came about. An example of this
would be The Oxen and The Wheels, where the moral in the story is based around oxen
being able to pull heavy weight. In every story, the animals usually embody the
characteristics they are known for in modern times, such as strength, wits,
survival, etc.. So something that I need to keep in mind for when I retell one of these stories, is that my characters have to match the action in which they are performing. Unless I am trying to create a paradox within the story, which doesn't really seem to be the idea of Aesop's fables.
Bibliography: The Aesop for Children, Illustrations by Milo Winter, Aesop (Winter)
As I have been working through reading B, I keep asking
myself, why do I delight in such stories that have been written for children? I
asked myself this, but then I went on to notice that the majority of these
stories portray the characters as older individuals. And by older I mean they
have surpassed childhood. So if these fables are in fact intended for a younger
audience, is the goal for the older generations to teach the younger of their
mistakes? It is true that the writing style of these stories is that of which
any level of reader should be able to understand. But my question here is, do
these morals mean anything to a person who has yet to learn this example, by
experiencing it him or herself? We use the phrase ‘life lessons’ quite often in
our times, and having something directly occur to us usually learns these life
lessons. Whether it is bad, or good, the reason we call it a life lesson is because
it more than likely left a big impact on us. Many of the morals they preach in
these fables, occur because of an incidence. The reason I can relate to so many
of them is perhaps because I have been in a similar situation myself. Could the
same be said for an eight year old, however?
Bibliography: The Aesop For Children, Illustrations by Milo Winter, Aesop (Winter)
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