The Two Bulls and the Frog

Name: The Two Bulls and the Frog
Author: Jean de La Fontaine

Two bulls fight fiercely for a heifer and for mastery over the cattle. A frog trembles at the conflict, and another frog asks why it concerns her. She explains that the defeated bull will be driven from the field and forced to feed in the marsh, where he will crush frogs while eating among the reeds. Her fear proves justified: the beaten bull retreats to their reedy shelter and tramples twenty frogs. The fable shows that the small often suffer because of the follies of the great.

By Jean de La Fontaine · First published 1668 · Genre: Fable, Didactic Literature, Allegory · 268 words

First lines

Two bulls engaged in shocking battle, / Both for a certain heifer's sake, / And lordship over certain cattle, / A frog began to groan and quake. / 'But what is this to you? ' / Inquired another of the croaking crew. / 'Why, sister, don't you see, / The end of this will be, / That one of these big brutes will yield, / And then be exiled from the field? / No more permitted on the grass to feed, / He'll forage through our marsh, on rush and reed; / And while he eats or chews the cud, / Will trample on us in the mud. / Alas! to think how frogs must suffer / By means of this proud lady heifer! ' / This fear was not without good sense. / One bull was beat, and much to their expense; / For, quick retreating to their reedy bower, / He trod on twenty of them in an hour.

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The Two Bulls and the Frog 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, Didactic Literature, Allegory, Moral Poetry, Animal Tale
Length: 268 words
Structure: 1 section, 3 paragraphs
Reading fit: Easy (6th Grade)

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Similar titles

Genres

Fable — A brief animal-centered narrative that ends with an explicit moral about the suffering of powerless people caused by the conflicts of the powerful.
Didactic Literature — The poem is designed to teach a social and ethical lesson: the follies and rivalries of great figures often harm ordinary people.
Allegory — The bulls, heifer, and frogs represent unequal social powers, with the animals' conflict symbolizing how elite disputes affect vulnerable bystanders.
Moral Poetry — Written in verse, the work develops toward a plainly stated moral judgment concerning responsibility, power, and collateral harm.