batch.motif.greek-aesop-fables-vernon-jones-gutenberg-l2913-l2924
---
record_id: batch.motif.greek-aesop-fables-vernon-jones-gutenberg-l2913-l2924
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/aesops-fables-vernon-jones.md
passage_locator:
label: THE OLD HOUND / THE CLOWN AND THE COUNTRYMAN / THE LARK AND THE FARMER /
THE LION AND THE ASS; lines 2913-2924
start: '2913'
end: '2924'
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 lion and an ass hunt together. At a cave containing wild goats, the lion
waits at the entrance while the ass goes inside and brays to drive the goats out.
The lion kills the goats as they emerge. Afterward the ass boasts of frightening
them, and the lion replies that the braying would have frightened him too if he
had not known it came from an ass.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: A lion and an ass become hunting partners and go hunting together.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: They come to a cave containing a number of wild goats.
category: setting
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:3
text: The lion stands at the mouth of the cave and waits for the goats to come out.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:4
text: The ass goes inside the cave and brays loudly to frighten the goats into the
open.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:5
text: The lion strikes down the goats one by one as they appear.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:6
text: When the cave is empty, the ass claims that he scared the goats well.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:7
text: The lion says the ass’s braying would have made him run if he had not known
the speaker was an ass.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: Lion
description: A lion who partners with the ass, waits at the cave mouth, kills the
goats as they emerge, and answers the ass’s boast.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- ev:5
- ev:7
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Ass
description: An ass who partners with the lion, enters the cave, brays to frighten
the goats out, and boasts afterward.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:4
- ev:6
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Wild goats
description: A number of wild goats inside the cave who are frightened out and struck
down by the lion.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:4
- ev:5
roles:
- id: role:1
label: hunting partner
assigned_to:
- fig:1
- fig:2
basis: The lion and ass set up as partners and hunt together.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:2
label: noise-maker / driver of prey
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: The ass goes inside the cave and brays to frighten the goats out.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: role:3
label: ambushing hunter
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The lion waits at the cave mouth and strikes down the goats as they appear.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:5
- id: role:4
label: hunted animals
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: The goats are in the cave, driven out, and killed by the lion.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:4
- ev:5
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: cave
literal_form: cave
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs:
- cave
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:4
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Partnership and arrival at the cave
summary: A lion and an ass go hunting together and reach a cave where wild goats
are located.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: scene:2
label: Driving prey from the cave
summary: The lion waits at the mouth of the cave while the ass enters and brays
to frighten the goats out.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: scene:3
label: Killing and boast
summary: The lion kills the goats as they emerge. After the cave is emptied, the
ass boasts of frightening them, and the lion gives an ironic reply.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
- ev:7
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: partnership of unequal animals in a hunt
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The lion and ass act as partners, but the lion performs the killing while
the ass serves by making noise to drive prey out.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:5
confidence: high
cautions: No available motif-family taxonomy entry directly matches this fable pattern.
- id: motif:2
label: boast answered by ironic correction
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
basis: After the ass boasts that he scared the goats well, the lion responds with
an ironic remark that depends on knowing the noise came from an ass.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:7
confidence: medium
cautions: The taxonomy reference to wisdom is broad; the passage is a fable with
an implied lesson, but no explicit moral is included in the supplied text.
comparison_claims: []
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: 2913-2915
quote_or_summary: A lion and an ass become partners and go hunting together.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/aesops-fables-vernon-jones.md
rights_note: Public domain; full text allowed.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: 2915-2917
quote_or_summary: They come to a cave containing a number of wild goats.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/aesops-fables-vernon-jones.md
rights_note: Public domain; full text allowed.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: 2917-2918
quote_or_summary: The lion stands at the mouth of the cave and waits for the goats
to come out.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/aesops-fables-vernon-jones.md
rights_note: Public domain; full text allowed.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: 2918-2920
quote_or_summary: The ass goes inside and brays loudly to frighten the goats into
the open.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/aesops-fables-vernon-jones.md
rights_note: Public domain; full text allowed.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: 2920-2921
quote_or_summary: The lion strikes the goats down one by one as they appear.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/aesops-fables-vernon-jones.md
rights_note: Public domain; full text allowed.
- id: ev:6
type: quote
locator: 2921-2923
quote_or_summary: "“Well, I scared them pretty well, didn't I?”"
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/aesops-fables-vernon-jones.md
rights_note: Public domain; full text allowed.
- id: ev:7
type: summary
locator: 2923-2924
quote_or_summary: The lion says that, had he not known the speaker was an ass, he
would have turned and run himself.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/aesops-fables-vernon-jones.md
rights_note: Public domain; full text allowed.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: high
notes: The literal extraction is straightforward from the supplied English passage.
Motif classification is limited because the available taxonomy has no close specific
match for this fable’s comic hunting-and-boasting pattern.
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: |-
Used only supplied passage and metadata; no external comparisons added.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:greek-aesop-fables-vernon-jones-gutenberg__l2913-l2924
passage_sha256=2a3f7463cedcc67ae976b812479ab3da047cfa28bb99d556e4f22ba0fb97ae93