batch.motif.greek-aesop-fables-vernon-jones-gutenberg-l1016-l1029
---
record_id: batch.motif.greek-aesop-fables-vernon-jones-gutenberg-l1016-l1029
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/aesops-fables-vernon-jones.md
passage_locator:
label: THE CAT AND THE MICE / THE MISCHIEVOUS DOG / THE CHARCOAL-BURNER AND THE
FULLER / THE MICE IN COUNCIL; lines 1016-1029
start: '1016'
end: '1029'
translation: Aesop's Fables; a new translation
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: ''
summary: The mice meet in council to discuss protection from the cat. An experienced
mouse proposes fastening a bell to the cat so its sound will warn them. The proposal
is approved until an old mouse asks who will perform the dangerous task of putting
the bell on the cat.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: All the mice meet together in council.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: The council discusses how to secure the mice against attacks by the cat.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:3
text: A mouse described as having standing and experience proposes fastening a bell
around the cat's neck.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:4
text: The proposed bell would warn the mice of the cat's approach by tinkling.
category: object
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:5
text: The proposal is warmly applauded and nearly adopted.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:6
text: An old mouse asks who is going to bell the cat.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: the Mice
description: A collective group that meets in council and seeks safety from the
cat.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: the cat
description: The enemy whose attacks the mice seek to avoid.
role_refs:
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: mouse of standing and experience
description: A mouse who proposes fastening a bell around the cat's neck.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: old Mouse
description: A mouse who agrees the plan is admirable but asks who will bell the
cat.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
roles:
- id: role:1
label: threatened council
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The mice gather to debate securing themselves against the cat's attacks.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:2
label: predatory enemy
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: The cat is identified as the attacker and enemy of the mice.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: role:3
label: plan proposer
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: This mouse introduces the plan to attach a warning bell to the cat.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:4
label: practical questioner
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: This mouse questions who will carry out the dangerous act required by the
plan.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: bell
literal_form: A bell to be fastened around the cat's neck, whose tinkling would
warn the mice.
associated_figures:
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: sym:2
label: council
literal_form: A meeting of all the mice to debate means of safety.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Mice deliberate in council
summary: The mice assemble and discuss how to protect themselves from the cat's
attacks.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Proposal to bell the cat
summary: An experienced mouse proposes attaching a bell to the cat so the sound
will warn the mice of the cat's approach.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: scene:3
label: Old mouse exposes the problem
summary: After the plan is applauded and nearly adopted, an old mouse asks who will
bell the cat.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:4
- fig:2
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: impractical plan requiring a dangerous executor
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The proposed warning system is praised as admirable, but the old mouse's
question reveals that carrying it out would require someone to approach and bell
the enemy cat.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:4
confidence: high
cautions: The passage supports the motif at the level of plot logic; no supplied
taxonomy family directly names this fable type.
- id: motif:2
label: collective deliberation under threat
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The mice gather in council to debate means of protection from attacks by
the cat.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
confidence: medium
cautions: This is a structural situation in the passage rather than a distinctive
named taxonomy motif.
- id: motif:3
label: wise elder's practical objection
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
basis: An old mouse accepts the plan's apparent merit but asks the practical question
that prevents uncritical adoption.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
confidence: medium
cautions: The taxonomy reference to wisdom is broad; the passage presents practical
insight rather than explicitly sacred or esoteric wisdom.
comparison_claims: []
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 1016-1019
quote_or_summary: All the mice meet in council and discuss how to secure themselves
against the attacks of the cat.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/aesops-fables-vernon-jones.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: lines 1020-1025
quote_or_summary: A mouse of standing and experience proposes fastening a bell around
the cat's neck so its tinkling will warn the mice of the cat's approach.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/aesops-fables-vernon-jones.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: lines 1025-1026
quote_or_summary: The proposal is warmly applauded and the mice are ready to adopt
it.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/aesops-fables-vernon-jones.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:4
type: quote
locator: lines 1026-1029
quote_or_summary: '"but may I ask who is going to bell the cat?"'
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/aesops-fables-vernon-jones.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short excerpt quoted.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: uncertain
notes: The passage is brief and self-contained. Motif labels are descriptive except
for the broad supplied taxonomy reference to wisdom.
reviewer_status:
status: needs_review
reviewer: ''
reviewed_at: ''
notes: Machine-generated draft from OpenAI Batch; not human-reviewed.
extracted_by: openai_batch:gpt-5.5
extracted_at: '2026-04-28'
notes: |-
No comparison claims were added because the passage itself does not support a specific comparison to another tradition or motif family beyond descriptive fable patterns.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:greek-aesop-fables-vernon-jones-gutenberg__l1016-l1029
passage_sha256=6ec115e8a856f875350721a3372f3a0230e2de221e5cb647b90c39f2ae7c1da8