Resumo de Aesop S Fables

Aesop lived around 620-560 BC, but his existence is mythic. his anme appears in classical
sources, including Plato, Aristophanes, and Xenophon. According to legend,
Aesop was a slave of Iadmon of Samos, but liberated himself through his witty
use of parables for dispute resolution. Ancient sources attribute his origins
to more than one place. Some say that he
was born in Sardis on Samos
and others, from Phrygia. He achieved social recognition
as a arbitur of disputes through the use of fables to represent conflicts
between opposing parties. Originally the parables had no morals, but morals
were added through the Middle Ages for Christian instruction. Through his quick tongue, Aesop gained
unwanted attention as he was the outspoken defendant of the common people and
drew the ire of Peisistratus, a despot of Athens
who had him condemned to death through the Oracle of Dephi. Aesop was thrown
off a cliff at Hypania.

The first collection of Aesop's Fables appeared around 300BC
and kept in the library of Alexandria.
The collection grew as the fables circulated making it difficult to ascertain
which are the originals. Stories that were brought back from trade with India
were included and many fables closely resemble the Jatarka Tales. When the
Romans spread their civilization through Europe, Aesop's
Fables went with them and they became primary literature passed on through
monastic systems as models for ethical training and debate. In 1484, Aesop's
Fables were first printed in English by
William Caxton. Witty and perceptive of the human predicament, they are still highly
circulated today although nobody actually knows which are the original
stories. The source and additions to the
fables are subjects for lively
scholastic study and offer an interesting reflection of cultural history as
ancient Greek trade flourished throughout the world, followed by the
development of the Roman
Empire which was then succeeded by the dissemination of fables
through religious houses. Often ignored
as childrens' literature, the fables
provoke discussion of social values and issues, questioning the justice of
natural law.

Through the use of stereotyped cariacatures of animals,
Aesop's Fables highlight the foibles and follies of human nature, providing an
original manual for business pesonnel management. Few lessons can be more clearly conveyed than
the parable of the greedy dog that lunges off a bridge to attack his reflection
thereby destroying himself in his haste. No reader can suppress laughter with
the hilarious presentation of the tortoise entreating the eagle for flying lessons. We find ourselves lampooned
by the grotesque humor of the ass impersonating the lap-dog and the fox
admiring an actor's mask. Concise, terse, the fables are as sharp as rapiers in
driving their points home. Still fresh after centuries of circulation and
repeatedly translated into a multitude of languages, Aesop's Fables still provide miniature studies of human
psyche.

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