The Ass and his Masters by Jean de La Fontaine

Name: The Ass and his Masters
Author: Jean de La Fontaine

A gardener’s ass complains to Destiny that he must rise before dawn to carry herbs to market, interrupting his sleep before even the cocks have sung. Fate grants his wish by making him carry a currier’s heavy, foul-smelling hides. The ass soon longs for his former master, under whom he could sometimes steal a cabbage-leaf, whereas his new work brings no such food and earns him cruel blows. He is then made a collier’s ass, but continues to complain. Fate, exhausted by his dissatisfaction, protests that it cannot devote itself solely to pleasing one jackass while kings and nations also have concerns. The fable concludes that people commonly regard their present condition as the worst and constantly trouble the skies with foolish wishes; if Jove granted every request, the renewed clamour would make his head burst.

By Jean de La Fontaine · First published 1668 · Genre: Fable, Moral Tale, Animal Fable · 386 words

First lines

A gardener's ass complain'd to Destiny / Of being made to rise before the dawn. / 'The cocks their matins have not sung,' said he, / 'Ere I am up and gone. / And all for what? To market herbs, it seems. / Fine cause, indeed, to interrupt my dreams! ' / Fate, moved by such a prayer, / Sent him a currier's load to bear, / Whose hides so heavy and ill-scented were, / They almost choked the foolish beast. / 'I wish me with my former lord,' he said; / 'For then, whene'er he turn'd his head, / If on the watch, I caught / A cabbage-leaf, which cost me nought. / But, in this horrid place, I find / No chance or windfall of the kind: -- / Or if, indeed, I do, / The cruel blows I rue. ' / Anon it came to pass / He was a collier's ass. / Still more complaint. 'What now? ' said Fate, / Quite out of patience. / 'If on this jackass I must wait, / What will become of kings and nations? / Has none but he aught here to tease him? / Have I no business but to please him? ' / And Fate had cause; -- for all are so. / Unsatisfied while here below / Our present lot is aye the worst. / Our foolish prayers the skies infest. / Were Jove to grant all we request, / The din renew'd, his head would burst.[1]

Open reader

What this Textopian page supports

The Ass and his Masters is listed on Textopian as a fable by Jean de La Fontaine, 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: Jean de La Fontaine
Date: 1668 CE
Language: English
Genres: Fable, Moral Tale, Animal Fable, Didactic Poetry, Satire
Length: 386 words
Structure: 1 section, 2 paragraphs
Reading fit: Very Easy (5th Grade or below)

Good citation fit

Work identity for The Ass and his Masters by Jean de La Fontaine
Canonical title URL and first readable passage URL
Genre and topic classification from the Textopian catalog
Readability and classroom-planning context
Passage-specific claims should cite the exact /read/ URL for the relevant chapter or paragraph

Similar titles

Genres

Fable — The poem uses a speaking animal, personified Fate, and a concise illustrative plot to deliver a moral about human dissatisfaction.
Moral Tale — Its central purpose is ethical instruction: those who continually resent their circumstances may find every new condition worse than the last.
Animal Fable — The ass is the principal character, and its changing masters and repeated complaints represent recognizable human failings through an animal protagonist.
Didactic Poetry — Written in verse, the work explicitly teaches a lesson about contentment, unreasonable wishes, and the limits of providence's patience.