The Farmer, the Dog, and the Fox

Name: The Farmer, the Dog, and the Fox
Author: Jean de La Fontaine

A fox, frustrated by his failure to steal from a poultry-yard, vows to rob the farmer. One night, while the farmer, his dog Towser, and the fowls are asleep, the fox finds that the entrance has been left open. He enters, kills every bird he can reach, carries away the finest pullets, and leaves the rest lying slaughtered. At dawn, the farmer discovers the devastation and angrily blames his servants and Towser for failing to give an alarm. Towser replies that the farmer himself had a greater interest in guarding the yard, yet slept and left the door open; it was unreasonable to expect a dog to sacrifice his rest when his master had been negligent. Though Towser’s argument is sound, his lowly position does not protect him from punishment, and he is whipped. The fable warns the head of a household not to rely blindly on others: he should personally ensure that his doors are secured and should never leave essential business to a fox’s opportunity.

By Jean de La Fontaine · First published 1678 · Genre: Fable, Moral Literature, Animal Tale · 1,013 words

First lines

The wolf and fox are neighbours strange: / I would not build within their range. / The fox once eyed with strict regard / From day to day, a poultry-yard; / But though a most accomplish'd cheat, / He could not get a fowl to eat. / Between the risk and appetite, / His rogueship's trouble was not slight. / 'Alas! ' quoth he, 'this stupid rabble / But mock me with their constant gabble; / I go and come, and rack my brains, / And get my labour for my pains. / Your rustic owner, safe at home, / Takes all the profits as they come: / He sells his capons and his chicks, / Or keeps them hanging on his hook, / All dress'd and ready for his cook; / But I, adept in art and tricks, / Should I but catch the toughest crower, / Should be brimful of joy, and more. / O Jove supreme! why was I made / A master of the fox's trade? / By all the higher powers, and lower, / I swear to rob this chicken-grower! ' / Revolving such revenge within, / When night had still'd the various din, / And poppies seem'd to bear full sway / O'er man and dog, as lock'd they lay / Alike secure in slumber deep, / And cocks and hens were fast asleep, / Upon the populous roost he stole. / By negligence, -- a common sin, -- / The farmer left unclosed the hole, / And, stooping down, the fox went in. / The blood of every fowl was spill'd, / The citadel with murder fill'd. / The dawn disclosed sad sights, I ween, / When heaps on slaughter'd heaps were seen, / All weltering in their mingled gore. / With horror stricken, as of yore, / The sun well nigh shrunk back again, / To hide beneath the liquid main. / Such sight once saw the Trojan plain, / When on the fierce Atrides'[1] head / Apollo's awful anger fell, / And strew'd the crimson field with dead: / Of Greeks, scarce one was left to tell / The carnage of that night so dread. / Such slaughter, too, around his tent, / The furious Ajax made, one night, / Of sheep and goats, in easy fight; / In anger blindly confident / That by his well-directed blows / Ulysses fell, or some of those / By whose iniquity and lies / That wily rival took the prize. / The fox, thus having Ajax play'd, / Bore off the nicest of the brood, -- / As many pullets as he could, -- / And left the rest, all prostrate laid. / The owner found his sole resource / His servants and his dog to curse. / 'You useless puppy, better drown'd! / Why did you not your 'larum sound? ' / 'Why did you not the evil shun,' / Quoth Towser, 'as you might have done? / If you, whose interest was more, / Could sleep and leave an open door, / Think you that I, a dog at best, / Would watch, and lose my precious rest? ' / This pithy speech had been, in truth, / Good logic in a master's mouth; / But, coming from a menial's lip, / It even lack'd the lawyership / To save poor Towser from the whip.

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Similar titles

Genres

Fable — The poem uses talking animals, a compact cautionary plot, and an explicit closing moral about personal responsibility and vigilance.
Moral Literature — Its central purpose is didactic: the farmer is condemned for delegating essential duties and trusting others to protect his interests.
Animal Tale — A fox, dog, wolf, and poultry act as the primary figures, with animal behavior serving to dramatize human folly, appetite, and blame.
Narrative Poetry — The work tells a complete sequence of events in verse, from the fox's frustrated plotting to the raid and the farmer's punishment of the dog.

What this Textopian page supports

The Farmer, the Dog, and the Fox is listed on Textopian as a fable by Jean de La Fontaine, dated 1678 CE.

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Work type: Fable
Author: Jean de La Fontaine
Date: 1678 CE
Language: English
Genres: Fable, Moral Literature, Animal Tale, Narrative Poetry, Satire
Length: 1,013 words
Structure: 1 section, 4 paragraphs
Reading fit: Fairly Easy (7th Grade)

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