The Hare and the Tortoise by Jean de La Fontaine

Jean de La Fontaine’s fable shows that speed is useless in a race without a timely start. A tortoise challenges the hare to wager which of them will first reach a tree on a nearby hill. The hare mocks her as mad and suggests hellebore to restore her senses, but she insists, and the stakes are placed near the goal. The hare has only a few leaps to make to win, yet he considers the contest beneath him. Confident that he can start late and easily overtake the tortoise, he delays to browse, sleep, and idle while she proceeds steadily, humbly, and cautiously. When he finally sees her near the goal, he rushes forward like lightning, but he is too late. The tortoise wins and mocks his defeated boasting, observing that she has beaten him despite carrying her house on her back.

By Jean de La Fontaine · First published 1668 · Genre: Fable, Didactic Literature, Allegory · 571 words

First lines

To win a race, the swiftness of a dart / Availeth not without a timely start. / The hare and tortoise are my witnesses. / Said tortoise to the swiftest thing that is, / 'I'll bet that you'll not reach, so soon as I / The tree on yonder hill we spy. ' / 'So soon! Why, madam, are you frantic? ' / Replied the creature, with an antic; / 'Pray take, your senses to restore, / A grain or two of hellebore. '[1] / 'Say,' said the tortoise, 'what you will; / I dare you to the wager still. ' / 'Twas done; the stakes were paid, / And near the goal tree laid -- / Of what, is not a question for this place, / Nor who it was that judged the race. / Our hare had scarce five jumps to make, / Of such as he is wont to take, / When, starting just before their beaks / He leaves the hounds at leisure, / Thence till the kalends of the Greeks,[2] / The sterile heath to measure. / Thus having time to browse and doze, / And list which way the zephyr blows, / He makes himself content to wait, / And let the tortoise go her gait / In solemn, senatorial state. / She starts; she moils on, modestly and lowly, / And with a prudent wisdom hastens slowly; / But he, meanwhile, the victory despises, / Thinks lightly of such prizes, / Believes it for his honour / To take late start and gain upon her. / So, feeding, sitting at his ease, / He meditates of what you please, / Till his antagonist he sees / Approach the goal; then starts, / Away like lightning darts: / But vainly does he run; / The race is by the tortoise won. / Cries she, 'My senses do I lack? / What boots your boasted swiftness now? / You're beat! and yet, you must allow, / I bore my house upon my back. '[3]

• Open reader

Similar titles

• The Tortoise And The Eagle by Esopo
• The Fox And The Grapes by Jean De La Fontaine
• The Hare And The Frogs by Jean De La Fontaine
• The Horse And The Ass by Jean De La Fontaine
• The Ass And The Little Dog by Jean De La Fontaine
• The Lark And Her Young Ones With The Owner Of A Field by Jean De La Fontaine

Genres

• Fable — The poem uses talking animals in a brief narrative to deliver a clear moral lesson: steady effort and timely action can overcome natural talent squandered through overconfidence.
• Didactic Literature — Its primary purpose is instruction, teaching readers about perseverance, prudence, humility, and the danger of procrastination.
• Allegory — The hare and tortoise function as symbolic figures representing reckless ability and patient diligence rather than merely literal animals.
• Animal Fiction — Animal characters speak, wager, reason, and compete in human-like ways while retaining traits conventionally associated with their species.

Tags

fable · verse narrative · animal characters · hare · tortoise · race · wager · competition · overconfidence · boastfulness · procrastination · idleness

What this Textopian page supports

The Hare and the Tortoise 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, Allegory, Animal Fiction, Narrative Poetry
• Length: 571 words
• Structure: 1 section, 4 paragraphs
• Reading fit: Fairly Easy (7th Grade)

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• Work identity for The Hare and the Tortoise 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