The Lion and the Rat by Jean de La Fontaine

Name: The Lion and the Rat
Author: Jean de La Fontaine

A rat accidentally appears between a lion’s paws, but the lion spares the small creature’s life. Soon afterward, the lion is trapped in a net while exploring the haunts of men, and neither his strength nor his rage can free him. The grateful rat comes to his aid, gnaws through a rope, and releases the lion. The fable teaches that no one is too small to be useful, and that time and patient effort can accomplish what force cannot.

By Jean de La Fontaine · First published 1668 · Genre: Fable, Moral Literature, Animal Tale · 281 words

First lines

To show to all your kindness, it behoves: / There's none so small but you his aid may need. / I quote two fables for this weighty creed, / Which either of them fully proves. / From underneath the sward / A rat, quite off his guard, / Popp'd out between a lion's paws. / The beast of royal bearing / Show'd what a lion was / The creature's life by sparing -- / A kindness well repaid; / For, little as you would have thought / His majesty would ever need his aid, / It proved full soon / A precious boon. / Forth issuing from his forest glen, / T' explore the haunts of men, / In lion net his majesty was caught, / From which his strength and rage / Served not to disengage. / The rat ran up, with grateful glee, / Gnaw'd off a rope, and set him free.

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What this Textopian page supports

The Lion and the Rat 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, Moral Literature, Animal Tale, Didactic Poetry, Allegory
Length: 281 words
Structure: 1 section, 3 paragraphs
Reading fit: Easy (6th Grade)

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Similar titles

Genres

Fable — The poem uses talking animals, a brief illustrative plot, and an explicit moral lesson about kindness, reciprocity, and the value of even the smallest helper.
Moral Literature — Its central purpose is didactic: it teaches that no person is too insignificant to be useful and that mercy may later be repaid.
Animal Tale — A lion and a rat act as the principal characters, with their contrasting sizes and abilities driving the action and lesson.
Didactic Poetry — La Fontaine presents instruction through verse, directly stating a moral principle and then demonstrating it through narrative.