Week 5: Reading Diary, Continued: The Lion and the Hare

The Lion and the Hare: Link

This story is from the Bidpai unit. Story source: The Tortoise and the Geese and Other Fables of Bidpai by Maude Barrows Dutton, with illustrations by E. Boyd Smith, (1908)

Illustration of La Fontaine's fable by Gustave Doré

I choose to highlight this story because the I am also interested how people/animals come together to fight a cause. In this story there was a mighty lion that roamed around eating all the other creatures. to rebuttal against the lion they came up to him and told him that because he was so great he shouldn't have to hunt for his food. They all decided that they would gather and decide who would sacrifice themselves to the lion.

Yet, one day it was the hare's turn to sacrifice himself to the lion. The hare was not ready to die yet. This is my favorite part of the story because the hair alone fought for himself instead of just giving up to the regular acts of the society. Instead the hare came up with a grand idea.

The hair told the other animals that the lion was still tormenting them all and that he was going to solve the problem once and for all. Before the hare went off to see the lion he mastered up a plan. By this time the lion was very hungry and upset from waiting. The hare arrived at the lions place and the lion asked why he had been waiting so long on his food. The hair replied with a story that on his way to sacrifice himself to him, along with another hare they were attacked my a lion. This other lion had ate his friend. The Lion was even more upset and angry than before.

This is were the hare's master plan started to take place. The hare told the lion he would take him to the other lion and he could fight him and show him who owned this forest. The hare took the lion to an ancient well. He told the lion that the other was there. In this well there was water. The lion then walked up to the well and saw his reflection. The lion had thought this was the other lion invading his territory, so he jumped in the well and fell in to never come out again.

What I gained from this story was that just because someone tells you what you should do doesn't always mean that you have to do it. You should stay strong to yourself and fight for what you believe in. Instead of just walking to his death the hare came up with a plan not only to save his life but to get ride of the lion for good.