The Funeral of the Lioness

Name: The Funeral of the Lioness
Author: Jean de La Fontaine

The lioness dies, and the Lion summons his realm to her funeral. His grief is violent and noisy, and the courtiers imitate his lamentation, since those at court must feel—or at least appear to feel—whatever pleases the sovereign. The stag does not attend the funeral or shed tears. The lioness had killed his wife and son, so he cannot mourn her. A flatterer reports that the stag smiled, and the enraged Lion orders the wolves to sacrifice him in vengeance for the queen. The stag boldly approaches the throne and claims that he has seen the lioness among flowers. She supposedly told him that she now lives happily with saints in the Elysian grove and warned him not to weep at her funeral, though she approved of the Lion’s proper royal mourning. The Lion and the court eagerly accept this account as a miracle and an apotheosis. Instead of being punished, the stag leaves with rich gifts. The tale concludes that pleasant dreams and flattery can appease royalty and win rewards, whatever offence one may have committed or however fierce a ruler’s anger may be.

By Jean de La Fontaine · First published 1678 · Genre: Fable, Satire, Political Allegory · 843 words

First lines

The lion's consort died: / Crowds, gather'd at his side, / Must needs console the prince, / And thus their loyalty evince / By compliments of course; / Which make affliction worse. / Officially he cites / His realm to funeral rites, / At such a time and place; / His marshals of the mace / Would order the affair. / Judge you if all came there. / Meantime, the prince gave way / To sorrow night and day. / With cries of wild lament / His cave he well-nigh rent. / And from his courtiers far and near, / Sounds imitative you might hear.

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Genres

Fable — A short animal tale in which a lion, stag, wolves, and courtiers enact human social behavior, ending with an explicit moral about flattery and royal power.
Satire — The poem sharply ridicules courtly hypocrisy, compulsory displays of grief, political sycophancy, and the arbitrary violence of monarchy.
Political Allegory — The animal court represents an absolutist human court, where subjects must imitate the ruler's emotions and survive through obedience and flattering speech.
Didactic Literature — Its concluding maxim directly teaches a practical, cynical lesson: flattering rulers can overcome even their anger and secure reward.

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The Funeral of the Lioness 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, Satire, Political Allegory, Didactic Literature, Animal Fiction
Length: 843 words
Structure: 1 section, 5 paragraphs
Reading fit: Easy (6th Grade)

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