Riassunto
Trama e riassunto di Le Favole di Fedro
A chi è rivolto
Readers who like short tales with a sting, animal stories with a point, and sharp little scenes of Roman life, and who enjoy hearing a clever moral land in a few lines.
Che cos’è questo libro
The Fables of Phaedrus is a collection of short animal tales and anecdotes in the manner of Aesop, put into Latin verse by Phaedrus, a Roman writer of the first century. He says he makes two gifts to the reader: laughter and guidance for life. The third and fourth books open with addresses to Eutychus and Particulo, and each book opens with a prologue where the poet speaks about his craft.
The tales are short. A wolf argues with a lamb, frogs ask for a king, a fox flatters a raven, and a dog drops his meat for a reflection. Phaedrus also adds stories of his own time, with emperors, actors, poets and slaves. In this book you meet the tricks of the strong, the pride of the vain and the quiet sense of the humble. Let us begin with the tales of the powerful and the weak.
In questo riassunto
- 1The strong prey on the weakFree
- 2Pride and envy lead to ruin
- 3Flattery and cunning win by tricks
- 4Just punishments and fair returns
- 5Poor and humble folk stay safe
- 6Learn to judge people for yourself
- 7Aesop and the voice of the poet
- 8How the tales are built
Punto chiave 1 di 8
The strong prey on the weak
The book opens with the wolf and the lamb. A hungry wolf stands upstream and blames the lamb downstream for fouling his water. The lamb answers with plain facts, so the wolf invents a charge about the lamb's father and tears him apart. Phaedrus says the fable aims at those who crush the innocent on false grounds.
The same theme returns in the tale of the cow, the goat, the sheep and the lion. The four hunt a stag together. The lion then claims every share by listing his own titles, one after another, and leaves his partners with nothing. The lesson is that an alliance with the powerful cannot be trusted.
The kite and the pigeons tell it again. The pigeons, tired of fear, choose the kite as their king, and he eats them one by one. A survivor says they deserve it. Again and again, Phaedrus shows a mighty creature with a smooth excuse.
He also shows the cost to the little ones when great ones quarrel. Two bulls fight over a herd, and a frog at the marsh fears the loser will flee into the reeds and trample her kind. In these early tales the poet speaks like a witness who has seen power at work.
That’s 1 of 8 key points.
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About this edition
Every format is free to start, and print and large print are at cost.
- LengthAbout 52,000 words
- Reading timeAbout 3 h 30 min
- FormatseBook, large-print eBook, audiobook, 15-minute summary
- LanguagesEnglish and 13 other languages
Questions about Le Favole di Fedro
What is The Fables of Phaedrus about?
It is a collection of short animal tales and anecdotes in Aesop's style. Each one makes a point about greed, pride, flattery, power or trust, and many end with a one-line moral for the reader.
Who was Phaedrus?
Phaedrus was a Roman poet of the first century who put Aesop's kind of fable into Latin verse. He says he was born near the Muses' hill, gained his freedom, and met trouble from the minister Sejanus.
What is the difference between Phaedrus and Aesop?
Aesop is the Greek slave and storyteller to whom fables are credited. Phaedrus says he follows Aesop but adds many tales of his own, including scenes from Roman life, and he calls his work Aesopian.
Are these fables easy to read?
Yes, in the sense that each tale is short, with a plain story and a clear moral. You can read one in a minute or two, and the animals and scenes are easy to picture.
What is the main message of the fables?
The fables warn against greed, pride and false trust, and praise caution, wit and honest modesty. Their steady idea is that strong creatures prey on the weak and that the careful and clever can protect themselves.