batch.motif.greek-aesop-fables-vernon-jones-gutenberg-l1709-l1730
---
record_id: batch.motif.greek-aesop-fables-vernon-jones-gutenberg-l1709-l1730
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/aesops-fables-vernon-jones.md
passage_locator:
label: THE APES AND THE TWO TRAVELLERS / THE ASS AND HIS BURDENS / THE SHEPHERD'S
BOY AND THE WOLF / THE FOX AND THE GOAT; lines 1709-1730
start: '1709'
end: '1730'
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: A Fox trapped in a well persuades a thirsty Goat to jump in by praising
the water. After the Goat drinks and also cannot escape, the Fox proposes using
the Goat’s body and horns as a means of climbing out, promises to help the Goat
afterward, then leaves him in the well and rebukes him for entering without ensuring
a way out. The stated moral is to look before leaping.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: A Fox has fallen into a well and cannot get out.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: A thirsty Goat comes by and asks the Fox whether the water is good.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:3
text: The Fox tells the Goat the water is excellent and invites him to come down
and try it.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:4
text: The Goat jumps into the well, drinks, and then cannot find a way out.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:5
text: The Fox instructs the Goat to stand against the well so that the Fox can climb
on the Goat’s back and horns.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:6
text: The Fox promises to help the Goat out after escaping.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:7
text: The Goat follows the Fox’s request, and the Fox climbs out of the well using
the Goat.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:8
text: The Fox walks away without helping the Goat and rebukes him for entering the
well without first making sure he could get out.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: obs:9
text: 'The passage ends with the moral: “Look before your leap.”'
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: Fox
description: An animal trapped in a well who speaks to the Goat, devises a way to
escape, and leaves after climbing out.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Goat
description: A thirsty animal who enters the well to drink, assists the Fox’s escape,
and remains trapped afterward.
role_refs:
- role:3
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
roles:
- id: role:1
label: trapped speaker
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The Fox is in the well and unable to get out, yet speaks to the Goat.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: role:2
label: deceptive escape-seeker
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The Fox praises the water, secures the Goat’s entry, promises help, uses
the Goat to escape, and walks away.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:4
- ev:5
- id: role:3
label: thirsty passerby
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: The Goat comes by thirsty and asks about the water.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:4
label: unwary helper left behind
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: The Goat jumps in without ensuring an exit, helps the Fox climb out, and
remains in the well.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:5
- ev:6
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: well
literal_form: well
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- id: sym:2
label: water
literal_form: water in the well
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
taxonomy_refs:
- water
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: sym:3
label: horns
literal_form: the Goat’s horns used as footholds
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Fox trapped in the well
summary: The Fox is already in the well and cannot get out when the thirsty Goat
arrives and asks about the water.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Goat enters after the Fox’s praise of the water
summary: The Fox says the water is the best he has tasted and invites the Goat to
try it; the Goat jumps in, drinks, and discovers no exit.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: scene:3
label: Fox escapes using the Goat
summary: The Fox proposes that the Goat brace himself against the well, promises
to help afterward, climbs over the Goat’s back and horns, and exits the well.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- id: scene:4
label: Abandoned Goat and concluding rebuke
summary: The Goat reminds the Fox of his promise, but the Fox leaves and says the
Goat should have ensured a way out before entering; the stated moral advises looking
before leaping.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: trickster escapes by deceiving another into danger
taxonomy_refs:
- trickster_boundary
basis: The Fox, trapped in the well, persuades the Goat to enter, uses the Goat’s
body and horns to cross out of the well, and then abandons him.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:4
- ev:5
confidence: medium
cautions: The taxonomy label is broad; the passage is a moral fable and does not
explicitly name the Fox as a trickster.
- id: motif:2
label: failure to consider exit before entering
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
basis: The Goat enters the well to drink without securing a way out; the Fox’s final
rebuke and the moral state that one should look before leaping.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:6
confidence: high
cautions: This is an explicit moral pattern rather than a mythic-symbolic motif.
comparison_claims: []
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 1709-1730
quote_or_summary: A Fox is unable to get out of a well; a thirsty Goat comes by
and asks whether the water is good.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/aesops-fables-vernon-jones.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short summary.
- id: ev:2
type: quote
locator: lines 1709-1730
quote_or_summary: "“it's the best water I ever tasted in all my life. Come down
and try it yourself.”"
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/aesops-fables-vernon-jones.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short excerpt.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: lines 1709-1730
quote_or_summary: The Goat thinks only of quenching his thirst, jumps into the well,
drinks, and then cannot find a way out.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/aesops-fables-vernon-jones.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short summary.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: lines 1709-1730
quote_or_summary: The Fox proposes that the Goat stand on his hind legs with forelegs
against the well so the Fox can climb on his back and horns, promising to help
the Goat afterward.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/aesops-fables-vernon-jones.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short summary.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: lines 1709-1730
quote_or_summary: The Goat complies; the Fox climbs over the Goat and out of the
well, then walks away.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/aesops-fables-vernon-jones.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short summary.
- id: ev:6
type: quote
locator: lines 1709-1730
quote_or_summary: "“you wouldn't have got into the well without making certain that
you could get out again.” Moral: “Look before your leap.”"
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/aesops-fables-vernon-jones.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short excerpt.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: uncertain
notes: Passage actions and figures are explicit. Motif taxonomy assignments are
interpretive and should be reviewed, especially because the supplied taxonomy
is broad relative to the fable.
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: |-
Only the provided passage text was used. Although the supplied label names multiple fables, the passage text supplied for extraction contains only “THE FOX AND THE GOAT.”
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:greek-aesop-fables-vernon-jones-gutenberg__l1709-l1730
passage_sha256=72f0643a4e31869dff39c36d5b034a4c318aebc49d895950ff5b1f6f1d913e8f