The Cock and the Pearl by Jean de La Fontaine

A cock scratches up a pearl of great beauty and takes it to a jeweller, admitting that although it is fine, he would value a crumb of bread far more. In a parallel example, a dunce inherits a manuscript of merit and brings it to a publisher; though told that it is good, he too would prefer any coin of gold.

By Jean de La Fontaine · First published 1668 · Genre: Fable, Didactic Literature, Moral Tale · 142 words

First lines

A cock scratch'd up, one day, / A pearl of purest ray, / Which to a jeweller he bore. / 'I think it fine,' he said, / 'But yet a crumb of bread / To me were worth a great deal more.'

So did a dunce inherit / A manuscript of merit, / Which to a publisher he bore. / ''Tis good,' said he, 'I'm told, / Yet any coin of gold / To me were worth a great deal more. '[1]

[1]: Phaedrus, III. 11.

• Open reader

Similar titles

• The Frog That Wished To Be As Big As The Ox by Jean De La Fontaine
• The Cock And The Fox by Jean De La Fontaine
• The Hornets And The Bees by Jean De La Fontaine
• The Two Bulls And The Frog by Jean De La Fontaine
• The Bitch And Her Friend by Jean De La Fontaine
• The Members And The Belly by Jean De La Fontaine

Genres

• Fable — A brief allegorical narrative featuring a cock and ending with an explicit moral comparison about valuing things according to one's capacity and needs.
• Didactic Literature — Its central purpose is instructional: it criticizes those who cannot recognize intellectual or artistic merit.
• Moral Tale — The poem conveys a concise ethical lesson about ignorance, utility, and the failure to appreciate true value.
• Verse Fable — The work uses rhymed poetic lines to tell its animal-based moral anecdote.

Tags

French fable · verse fable · seventeenth-century literature · moral allegory · animal protagonist · cock · pearl · jeweller · bread · manuscript · publisher · inheritance

What this Textopian page supports

The Cock and the Pearl 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, Didactic Literature, Moral Tale, Verse Fable, Allegory
• Length: 142 words
• Structure: 1 section, 3 paragraphs

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• Work identity for The Cock and the Pearl by Jean de La Fontaine
• Canonical title URL and first readable passage URL
• Genre and topic classification from the Textopian catalog
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More by Jean de La Fontaine

• To Monseigneur the Dauphin (1668)
• The Grasshopper and the Ant (1668)
• The Raven and the Fox (1668)
• The Frog that Wished to be as Big as the Ox (1668)
• The Two Mules (1668)
• The Wolf and the Dog (1668)
• The Heifer, the Goat, and the Sheep, in Company with the Lion (1668)
• The Wallet (1668)
• All works by Jean de La Fontaine