The Lion and the Ass Hunting

Name: The Lion and the Ass Hunting
Author: Jean de La Fontaine

The lion, king of animals, decides to celebrate his birthday by hunting wild boars, deer, and stags. To ensure success, he chooses an ass as his aide-de-camp because of its powerful voice. The lion hides the ass in a suitable place and orders him to bray, confident that the terrible sound will frighten the forest animals from their shelters and drive them into his ambush. The ass’s cries terrify the creatures of the wood, which flee directly into the lion’s trap. Proud of his part in the hunt, the ass claims that his service has made both hunters victorious. The lion praises his braying but adds that, had he not known the ass and its race, he too would have been frightened. The ass is offended by this deserved rebuke, showing that even a donkey resents boasting judged unsuitable to its nature.

By Jean de La Fontaine · First published 1668 · Genre: Fable, Animal Fable, Didactic Literature · 343 words

First lines

The king of animals, with royal grace, / Would celebrate his birthday in the chase. / 'Twas not with bow and arrows, / To slay some wretched sparrows; / The lion hunts the wild boar of the wood, / The antlered deer and stags, the fat and good. / This time, the king, t' insure success, / Took for his aide-de-camp an ass, / A creature of stentorian voice, / That felt much honour'd by the choice. / The lion hid him in a proper station, / And order'd him to bray, for his vocation, / Assured that his tempestuous cry / The boldest beasts would terrify, / And cause them from their lairs to fly. / And, sooth, the horrid noise the creature made / Did strike the tenants of the wood with dread; / And, as they headlong fled, / All fell within the lion's ambuscade. / 'Has not my service glorious / Made both of us victorious? ' / Cried out the much-elated ass. / 'Yes,' said the lion; 'bravely bray'd! / Had I not known yourself and race, / I should have been myself afraid! ' / If he had dared, the donkey / Had shown himself right spunky / At this retort, though justly made; / For who could suffer boasts to pass / So ill-befitting to an ass? [1]

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Genres

Fable — The work is a brief animal tale in the Aesopic tradition, using a lion and an ass to dramatize a moral lesson about foolish pride and self-importance.
Animal Fable — Animals act as speaking, socially recognizable characters: the lion embodies authority and calculation, while the ass represents vanity, loudness, and misplaced self-regard.
Didactic Literature — Its plot is designed to instruct readers against boasting and against claiming excessive credit for a success chiefly produced by others.
Moral Tale — The lion's cutting response exposes the ass's inflated interpretation of his role, delivering an implicit moral about knowing one's true worth and place.

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The Lion and the Ass Hunting is listed on Textopian as a fable by Jean de La Fontaine, dated 1668 CE.

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Work type: Fable
Author: Jean de La Fontaine
Date: 1668 CE
Language: English
Genres: Fable, Animal Fable, Didactic Literature, Moral Tale, Satire
Length: 343 words
Structure: 1 section, 2 paragraphs
Reading fit: Fairly Easy (7th Grade)

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