Thyrsis and Amaranth by Jean de La Fontaine

Thyrsis, speaking to the young Amaranth, describes love as a delightful yet painful affliction that makes one see a beloved face everywhere, ignore all other people, blush at a familiar voice or sound, sigh without knowing why, and fear yet welcome the sight of one particular shepherd. Believing that Amaranth recognizes these feelings for him, Thyrsis is encouraged when she says love is no stranger to her. His hope collapses when she explains that her affection is for Clidamant. Mortified, Thyrsis becomes an example of those who seek their own advantage but instead further another person’s cause.

By Jean de La Fontaine · First published 1678 · Genre: Fable, Verse Fable, Pastoral Poetry · 969 words

First lines

For Mademoiselle De Sillery.[1]

[1]: _Mdlle. de Sillery_. -- Gabrielle-Francoise Brulart de Sillery, niece of La Fontaine's friend and patron, the Duke de La Rochefoucauld (author of the _Maximes_). She married Louis de Tibergeau, Marquis de La Motte-au-Maine, and died in 1732.

• Open reader

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Genres

• Fable — The poem is explicitly framed as a fable and concludes with a concise general moral: those pursuing their own advantage may inadvertently serve another person's interests.
• Verse Fable — It is a brief narrative written in rhymed verse, employing a compact anecdote and an explicit didactic conclusion characteristic of La Fontaine's verse fables.
• Pastoral Poetry — Its characters, Thyrsis, Amaranth, and Clidamant, are conventional shepherd figures, and its imagery of woods, streams, village greens, and shepherd life belongs to the pastoral tradition.
• Love Poetry — The central subject is love: Thyrsis describes its emotional symptoms and pleasures while attempting to declare his feelings to Amaranth.

Tags

French fable · verse narrative · pastoral poetry · shepherds and shepherdesses · courtship · unrequited love · romantic disappointment · love as affliction · love's symptoms · idealized beloved · mistaken assumptions · jealousy

What this Textopian page supports

Thyrsis and Amaranth is listed on Textopian as a fable by Jean de La Fontaine, dated 1678 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: 1678 CE
• Language: English
• Genres: Fable, Verse Fable, Pastoral Poetry, Love Poetry, Satire
• Length: 969 words
• Structure: 1 section, 7 paragraphs
• Reading fit: Easy (6th Grade)

Good citation fit

• Work identity for Thyrsis and Amaranth by Jean de La Fontaine
• Canonical title URL and first readable passage URL
• Genre and topic classification from the Textopian catalog
• Readability and classroom-planning context
• Passage-specific claims should cite the exact /read/ URL for the relevant chapter or paragraph

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