The Miller, His Son, and Their Ass
The Miller, His Son, and Their Ass is a fable written by Esopo. The story goes as follows: A miller had a son who was lazy and would not help his father with the work at the mill. One day, the son came up with the idea to sell the mill's ass to buy a pair of shoes. The father agreed, but the son soon realized that he had made a mistake when the ass began to eat all of their grain. The story teaches the lesson that laziness and poor decision-making can lead to negative consequences.
By Esopo · First published 1668 · Genre: Fable, Folklore, Children's Literature · 496 words
First lines
A Miller, accompanied by his young Son, was driving his Ass to market in hopes of finding a purchaser for him. On the road they met a troop of girls, laughing and talking, who exclaimed, "Did you ever see such a pair of fools? To be trudging along the dusty road when they might be riding! " The Miller thought there was sense in what they said; so he made his Son mount the Ass, and himself walked at the side. Presently they met some of his old cronies, who greeted them and said, "You'll spoil that Son of yours, letting him ride while you toil along on foot! Make him walk, young lazybones! It'll do him all the good in the world. " The Miller followed their advice, and took his Son's place on the back of the Ass while the boy trudged along behind. They had not gone far when they overtook a party of women and children, and the Miller heard them say, "What a selfish old man! He himself rides in comfort, but lets his poor little boy follow as best he can on his own legs! "
What this Textopian page supports
The Miller, His Son, and Their Ass is listed on Textopian as a fable by Esopo, dated 1668 CE.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Fable
- Author: Esopo
- Date: 1668 CE
- Language: English
- Genres: Fable, Folklore, Children's Literature, Classical Literature, Didactic Literature
- Length: 496 words
- Structure: 1 section, 3 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Standard (8th-9th Grade)
Good citation fit
- Work identity for The Miller, His Son, and Their Ass by Esopo
- Canonical title URL and first readable passage URL
- Genre and topic classification from the Textopian catalog
- Readability and classroom-planning context
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Discussion starters
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Similar titles
- The Old Woman And The Doctor by Esopo
- The Ass And His Masters by Esopo
- The Mule by Esopo
- The Two Frogs by Esopo
- The Clown And The Countryman by Esopo
- The Fox And The Goat by Esopo
Genres
- Fable — The text is a story that features animals, plants, inanimate objects, and natural forces portrayed as humans, instructing moral lessons, attributed to Esopo who was well known for these types of stories.
- Folklore — As a fable, it is also inherently a piece of folklore, being a traditional story passed down verbally throughout history.
- Children's Literature — While fables can be read and understood by adults, they are often targeted towards children due to their educational and moral angles.
- Classical Literature — As the tale is attributed to Esopo, a writer from Ancient Greece, it carries the hallmarks of classical literature.
Tags
fable · morality · father-son relationship · animal characters · humor · life lessons · decision making · societal expectations · critique · advice · perspective · irony