Aesop`s Fables 伊索寓言 Barnes & Noble Classics ISBN=9781593083304pdf/txt下载_在线阅读全文

内容简介

　　Aesop's Fables, by Aesop, is part of the Barnes NobleClassics series, which offers quality editions at affordable pricesto the student and the general reader, including new scholarship,thoughtful design, and pages of carefully crafted extras. Here aresome of the remarkable features of Barnes NobleClassics:
New introductions commissioned from today's top writers andscholars Biographies of the authors Chronologies of contemporaryhistorical, biographical, and cultural events Footnotes andendnotes Selective discussions of imitations, parodies, poems,books, plays, paintings, operas, statuary, and films inspired bythe work Comments by other famous authors Study questions tochallenge the reader's viewpoints and expectations Bibliographiesfor further reading Indices Glossaries, when appropriateAlleditions are beautifully designed and are printed to superiorspecifications; some include illustrations of historical interest.Barnes Noble Classics pulls together a constellation ofinfluences—biographical, historical, and literary—to enrich eachreader's understanding of these enduring works.

Aesop's Fables, by Aesop, is part of the Barnes & Noble
Classics series, which offers quality editions at affordable prices
to the student and the general reader, including new scholarship,
thoughtful design, and pages of carefully crafted extras. Here are
some of the remarkable features of Barnes & Noble
Classics: 
New introductions commissioned from today's top writers and
scholars Biographies of the authors Chronologies of contemporary
historical, biographical, and cultural events Footnotes and
endnotes Selective discussions of imitations, parodies, poems,
books, plays, paintings, operas, statuary, and films inspired by
the work Comments by other famous authors Study questions to
challenge the reader's viewpoints and expectations Bibliographies
for further reading Indices & Glossaries, when appropriateAll
editions are beautifully designed and are printed to superior
specifications; some include illustrations of historical interest.
Barnes & Noble Classics pulls together a constellation of
influences—biographical, historical, and literary—to enrich each
reader's understanding of these enduring works. 
 　　As legend has it, the storyteller Aesop was a slave who
lived in ancient Greece during the sixth century B.C. His
memorable, recountable fables have brought amusing characters to
life and driven home thought-provoking morals for generations of
listeners and modern-day readers. Translated into countless
languages and familiar to people around the world, Aesop’s fables
never tarnish despite being told again and again. 
　　This collection presents nearly 300 of Aesop’s most entertaining
and enduring stories—from “The Hare and the Tortoise” and “The Town
Mouse and the Country Mouse” to “The Goose That Laid the Golden
Eggs” and “The Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing.” Populated by a colorful
array of animal characters who personify every imaginable human
type—from fiddling grasshoppers and diligent ants to sly foxes,
wicked wolves, brave mice, and grateful lions—these timeless tales
are as fresh and relevant today as when they were first
created. 
　　Full of humor, insight, and wit, the tales in Aesop’s Fables
champion the value of hard work and perseverance, compassion for
others, and honesty. They are age-old wisdom in a delicious form,
for the consumption of adults and children alike. 
　　D. L. Ashliman, an emeritus professor at the University of
Pittsburgh, taught folklore, mythology, German, and comparative
literature at that institution for 33 years. He has also served as
guest professor at the University of Augsburg in Germany.

显示全部信息

目　　录

The World of Aesop and His Fables
Introduction by D. L. Ashliman
AESOPS FABLES
Glossary of Names and Terms from
Classical Mythology
Appendix (Aesopic Fables and Their
Aarne-Thompson Type Numbers)
Inspired by Aesop's Fables
Comments & Questions
For Further Reading
Alphabetical Index of Fables

在线试读部分章节

Aesop (sometimes spelled ?sop, ?sopus, Esop,Esope, or—using the Greek form of his name—Aisopos) has been knownin history and in legend since the fifth century b.c., or earlier,as a gifted Greek storyteller and the author of the world’sbest-known collection of fables. However, it cannot be proven withany degree of certainty that he existed as a real person. Mostmodern scholars believe that Aesop was instead a name invented,already in antiquity, to provide attribution for a body of oraltales whose true authors were a number of anonymous storytellers.Martin Luther expressed this view some 500 years ago: “Attributingthese stories to Aesop is, in my opinion, itself a fiction. Perhapsthere has never been on earth a man by the name of Aesop” (quotedin Jacobs, History of the Aesopic Fabl, p. 15; see “For FurtherReading”).
　　Although it is possible that there was indeed a gifted Greekstoryteller by the name of Aesop, his reputation expanded tolegendary proportions in the decades and centuries following hisdeath, and with time many more stories and deeds were credited tohim than he could have composed and performed. Supporting thisview, many of the earliest references to the stories of Aesop referto Aesopic (or Aesopian) fables rather than Aesop’s fables. Inother words, Aesopic, an adjective, describes a kind of story and aliterary tradition but does not claim to identify a specificauthor.
　　Onething is certain: Aesop, if he existed at all, did not leave behinda collection of written fables. His reputation is that of an oralstoryteller, not an author of written literature. The oldestreferences to his fables refer to tales memorized and retold, notwritten and read. For example, from Aristophanes’s comedy Wasps(written in 422 b.c.) we learn that telling anecdotes and comicstories in the style of Aesop was common entertainment at banquetsin ancient Athens. More seriously, in 360 b.c. Plato recorded inhis dialog Phaedo (section 61b) that Socrates, under sentence ofdeath in prison, diverted himself by reformulating some of Aesop’sfables. Plato’s Phaedo quotes Socrates himself: “I took some fablesof Aesop, which I had ready at hand and knew, and turned them intoverse.” The doomed philosopher did not have a book or manuscript ofAesop’s fables in prison with him, if such a book or manuscripteven existed at the time. He knew the fables from memory, as didthe partygoers in Aristophanes’s comedy.

Aesop (sometimes spelled ?sop, ?sopus, Esop,
Esope, or—using the Greek form of his name—Aisopos) has been known
in history and in legend since the fifth century b.c., or earlier,
as a gifted Greek storyteller and the author of the world’s
best-known collection of fables. However, it cannot be proven with
any degree of certainty that he existed as a real person. Most
modern scholars believe that Aesop was instead a name invented,
already in antiquity, to provide attribution for a body of oral
tales whose true authors were a number of anonymous storytellers.
Martin Luther expressed this view some 500 years ago: “Attributing
these stories to Aesop is, in my opinion, itself a fiction. Perhaps
there has never been on earth a man by the name of Aesop” (quoted
in Jacobs, History of the Aesopic Fabl, p. 15; see “For Further
Reading”).

　　Although it is possible that there was indeed a gifted Greek
storyteller by the name of Aesop, his reputation expanded to
legendary proportions in the decades and centuries following his
death, and with time many more stories and deeds were credited to
him than he could have composed and performed. Supporting this
view, many of the earliest references to the stories of Aesop refer
to Aesopic (or Aesopian) fables rather than Aesop’s fables. In
other words, Aesopic, an adjective, describes a kind of story and a
literary tradition but does not claim to identify a specific
author.

　　One
thing is certain: Aesop, if he existed at all, did not leave behind
a collection of written fables. His reputation is that of an oral
storyteller, not an author of written literature. The oldest
references to his fables refer to tales memorized and retold, not
written and read. For example, from Aristophanes’s comedy Wasps
(written in 422 b.c.) we learn that telling anecdotes and comic
stories in the style of Aesop was common entertainment at banquets
in ancient Athens. More seriously, in 360 b.c. Plato recorded in
his dialog Phaedo (section 61b) that Socrates, under sentence of
death in prison, diverted himself by reformulating some of Aesop’s
fables. Plato’s Phaedo quotes Socrates himself: “I took some fables
of Aesop, which I had ready at hand and knew, and turned them into
verse.” The doomed philosopher did not have a book or manuscript of
Aesop’s fables in prison with him, if such a book or manuscript
even existed at the time. He knew the fables from memory, as did
the partygoers in Aristophanes’s comedy.

　　The
most frequently cited ancient reference to the man Aesop is found
in the History of the Greco-Persian Wars written by the Greek
historian Herodotus about 425 b.c. Here we learn that Aesop, the
fable writer, was a slave of Iadmon, son of Hephaestopolis, a
Samian, and that Iadmon’s grandson (also named Iadmon) claimed and
received compensation for the murder of Aesop. If this account is
true, Aesop would have lived during the sixth century b.c. Apart
from this sketchy biography, Herodotus recorded essentially no
additional details about the fable writer.

　　However, later Greek and Roman writers were not so reticent. One
body of literature is particularly relevant in this regard. Usually
referred to as The Life of Aesop, this work has survived in a
number of medieval manuscripts by different anonymous compilers and
is based on earlier accounts, now lost. The statements about
Aesop’s life history contained in the different versions of this
work often contradict one another, or they are so miraculous and
fantastic as to be unbelievable by modern
standards.

　　The
ultimate source of these accounts is undoubtedly folklore:
anonymous legends told and retold by generations of oral
storytellers. The Life of Aesop is today generally held to be
fiction, but as is the case with many legends, there could be at
least a kernel of truth in one or more of the episodes. The
following biographical outline has been gleaned from different
versions of The Life of Aesop, most prominently the accounts
published by Lloyd W. Daly in his Aesop without Morals (pp. 31–90)
and the Everyman’s Library version of Aesop: Fables (pp.
17–45).

　　Aesop was born a slave, or possibly was captured into slavery at
an early age. His birthplace is variously stated as Thrace,
Phrygia, Ethiopia, Samos, Athens, or Sardis. He was dark-skinned.
In fact, it is said that his name was derived from Aethiop
(Ethiopian). He was physically deformed: a hunchback, pot belly,
misshapen head, snub nose, and bandy legs are often mentioned.
Although in his early years he suffered from a serious speech
impediment, or—according to some—the inability to speak at all, he
was cured through the intervention of a deity and became a gifted
orator, especially skillful at incorporating fables into his
speeches.

　　As a
young man Aesop was transported by a slave trader to Ephesus (in
modern Turkey). Because of his grotesque appearance, no one there
would buy him, so he was taken to the island of Samos, where he was
examined by Xanthus, identified in the manuscripts as “an eminent
philosopher,” but a person whose existence cannot be verified
historically. At first repulsed by Aesop’s appearance, Xanthus
changed his mind when the slave proclaimed, “A philosopher should
value a man for his mind, not for his body.” Impressed with Aesop’s
astuteness, Xanthus purchased him as a manservant for his
wife.

　　Aesop soon proved himself to be an irreverent and sarcastic
trickster with a clever retort for every occasion. The following
episode is typical of many others illustrating how Aesop’s quick
wit saved him from punishment, sometimes deserved, sometimes not:
Xanthus, wanting to know what fate awaited him on a particular day,
sent Aesop to see if any crows were outside the door. According to
popular belief, two crows would portend good fortune, whereas a
single crow would be an omen of bad luck. Aesop saw a pair of crows
and reported this to his master, who then set forth with good
cheer. Upon opening the door, Xanthus saw only a single crow, for
one of them had flown away, and he angrily turned on his slave for
having tricked him into beginning a dangerous venture. “You shall
be whipped for this!” said Xanthus, and while Aesop was being
readied for his punishment a messenger arrived at the door with an
invitation for Xanthus to dine with his friends. “Your omens have
no meaning!” cried Aesop. “I saw the auspicious pair of crows, yet
I am about to be beaten like a dog, whereas you saw the ominous
single crow, and you are about to make merry with your friends.”
Perceiving the irony and the wisdom of this observation, Xanthus
released Aesop and spared him the threatened
punishment.

　　Aesop’s cleverness extended from word to deed. An unrepentant
trickster, his pranks ranged from tricking his fellow slaves into
carrying the heavier burdens to seducing his master’s wife with her
unwitting husband’s apparent blessing. His tricks often were masked
by feigned stupidity on his part, which has led commentators to
compare him to the German Till Eulenspiegel and the Turkish
Nasreddin Hoca, two of the world’s most rascally but beloved
tricksters.

　　Aesop’s legendary wisdom and shrewdness sometimes moved into the
realm of the supernatural. He could solve seemingly impossible
riddles and conundrums, foretell the future with uncanny accuracy,
and unerringly discover hidden treasures. A master of human
psychology, he understood what motivated people to act, and used
this knowledge to manipulate them to his advantage. As his life
progressed he moved to ever greater venues: from a trickster in a
slave’s workroom to a lecturer in a philosopher’s auditorium to a
diplomat and councilor in the courts of governors and
kings.

　　With
time his cunning, wisdom, and oratory skills brought him freedom
from slavery, but in the end they cost him his life. At Delphi the
citizens, offended by his lack of respect for their aristocracy and
for their principal deity Apollo, planted a golden cup in his
baggage, then accused him of temple theft.

　　Sentenced to die by being thrown over a cliff, Aesop pleaded his
case with a series of fables, one of which was the story of “The
Mouse, the Frog, and the Hawk” (no. 67 in the present collection).
In this tale a frog and a mouse go swimming together in a pool with
their feet tied together, but the mouse drowns. The frog, burdened
by the dead mouse, is now an easy prey for a hawk, which forthwith
captures and devours him.

　　Aesop compared himself to the mouse and the Delphians to the
frog. “You may kill me,” he predicted, “but my unjust death will
bring you great misfortune.” Aesop was executed near Delphi, and
his dire prediction came true. Shortly after his death the region
was visited with fa...

显示全部信息

Aesop`s Fables 伊索寓言 Barnes & Noble Classics ISBN=9781593083304下载

Aesop`s Fables 伊索寓言 Barnes & Noble Classics ISBN=9781593083304

发布书评

相关图书推荐