Aesop and his Fables

Aesop and his Fables

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Traditionally A Phrygian Slave
According to tradition Aesop the author of the famous Aesop's Fables is said to have a slave who lived approximately 600BC. Aristotle mentions Aesop as a public Defender implying that at this time he had been freed from slavery. Plutarch stated the the Athenians created a noble statue of him. As there is little further information on Aesop's life many scholars have cast doubt as to whether he actually existed at all.

Aesop's Fables
The group or Fables which are referred to as Aesop's Fables date back to the 5th Century BC and were translated from Latin by various Greek Authors.

Many of the fables in these compilations have in fact since been found on Egyptian papyri known to date between 800 and 1000 years before the time of Aesop. This clearly cast doubts on the authorship of many of the fables attributed to Aesop. Many of the fables were possibly merely compiled by Aesop from existing fables, much in the same way that the Mother Goose Nursery Rhymes were but a new compilation of existing rhymes!

There are many hundreds of fables attributed to Aesop which include the following;

The Wolf And The Lamb
The Bat And The Weasels
The Ass And The Grasshopper
The Lion And The Mouse
The Charcoal-Burner And The Fuller
The Father And His Sons
The Boy Hunting Locusts
The Cock And The Jewel
The Kingdom Of The Lion
The Wolf And The Crane
The Fisherman Piping
Hercules And The Wagoner

The actual fables can be read here: Aesop's Fables

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