Comparative mythology corpus
batch.motif.greek-aesop-fables-vernon-jones-gutenberg-l4159-l4175
batch.motif.greek-aesop-fables-vernon-jones-gutenberg-l4159-l4175
---
record_id: batch.motif.greek-aesop-fables-vernon-jones-gutenberg-l4159-l4175
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/aesops-fables-vernon-jones.md
passage_locator:
label: THE FOX AND THE GRASSHOPPER / THE FARMER, HIS BOY, AND THE ROOKS / THE ASS
AND THE DOG / THE ASS CARRYING THE IMAGE; lines 4159-4175
start: '4159'
end: '4175'
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 man places an Image on an Ass to take it to a town temple. People bow
out of reverence for the Image, but the Ass mistakes their reverence as honor
paid to himself. The Ass becomes conceited, refuses to proceed, and is beaten
by his driver, who rebukes him for imagining that people worship an ass. The moral
states that rude shocks await those who take credit due to others.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: A man places an Image on the back of an Ass to take it to a temple in town.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: People encountered on the road uncover and bow their heads.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:3
text: The people’s gestures are directed toward the Image out of reverence.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:4
text: The Ass thinks the gestures are expressions of respect for himself.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:5
text: The Ass becomes conceited and stops, refusing to go farther while carrying
the load.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:6
text: The driver beats the obstinate Ass with a stick and rebukes him.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:7
text: The closing moral says that those who take credit due to others should expect
rude shocks.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: Ass
description: The animal carrying the Image; he misreads the people’s reverence as
respect for himself and refuses to continue.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Image
description: The Image placed on the Ass’s back and carried toward a temple; the
people’s reverence is for it.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Driver
description: The driver of the Ass, who strikes and rebukes him when he refuses
to proceed.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: People on the road
description: People met along the road who uncover and bow their heads out of reverence
for the Image.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Certain man
description: The man who puts the Image on the Ass to take it to a temple.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
roles:
- id: role:1
label: load-bearer
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The Ass carries the Image on his back.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:2
label: mistaken claimant of honor
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The Ass thinks reverence for the Image is respect for himself and becomes
conceited.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: role:3
label: true object of reverence
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: The people bow out of reverence for the Image.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:4
label: disciplining driver
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: The driver beats and rebukes the Ass after the Ass refuses to proceed.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: role:5
label: reverent bystanders
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: The people uncover and bow their heads for the Image.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:6
label: transporter of sacred image
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: The man places the Image on the Ass to take it to a temple.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: Image
literal_form: An Image carried on the back of an Ass to a temple.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:4
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: sym:2
label: Temple
literal_form: A town temple as the destination for the Image.
associated_figures:
- fig:2
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: sym:3
label: Bowing and uncovering heads
literal_form: Gestures made by people on the road out of reverence for the Image.
associated_figures:
- fig:2
- fig:4
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: sym:4
label: Stick
literal_form: The driver’s stick used to strike the obstinate Ass.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Image loaded for temple transport
summary: A man puts an Image on the Ass’s back to carry it to a town temple.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Reverence misread by the Ass
summary: People along the road bow to the Image, and the Ass mistakenly interprets
their reverence as honor paid to himself.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: scene:3
label: Refusal and correction
summary: The conceited Ass stops and refuses to proceed, so the driver strikes him
and says people are not worshiping an ass.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:3
symbol_refs:
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- id: scene:4
label: Moral on taking another’s credit
summary: The moral states that people who claim credit due to others will receive
rude shocks.
figure_refs: []
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: False credit for another’s honor
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
basis: The Ass mistakes reverence for the Image as respect for himself, and the
moral explicitly warns against taking credit due to others.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:6
confidence: high
cautions: The taxonomy reference is broad; the passage is a moral fable rather than
a mythic wisdom episode.
- id: motif:2
label: Pride corrected by humiliation or punishment
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The Ass becomes conceited, refuses to move, and is beaten and rebuked by
his driver.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
confidence: high
cautions: This is a local fable pattern; no specific supplied mythic motif family
directly matches it.
- id: motif:3
label: Carrier mistaken for sacred recipient
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The Ass carries a revered Image and interprets reverence toward the carried
object as reverence toward himself.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:3
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage supports the pattern internally, but no broader comparative
claim is made by the passage.
comparison_claims: []
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 4159-4162
quote_or_summary: A man puts an Image on the back of his Ass to take it to one of
the town’s temples.
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 4162-4164
quote_or_summary: People met on the road uncover and bow their heads out of reverence
for the Image.
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 4164-4166
quote_or_summary: The Ass thinks the people are honoring him and begins to give
himself airs.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/aesops-fables-vernon-jones.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: lines 4166-4169
quote_or_summary: The Ass becomes so conceited that he stops and refuses to proceed
with his load.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/aesops-fables-vernon-jones.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:5
type: quote
locator: lines 4169-4173
quote_or_summary: The driver hits the Ass with his stick and says, “do you suppose
it's come to this, that men pay worship to an Ass?”
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/aesops-fables-vernon-jones.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short quotation from public domain text.
- id: ev:6
type: quote
locator: lines 4174-4175
quote_or_summary: "“Rude shocks await those who take to themselves the credit that
is due to others.”"
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/aesops-fables-vernon-jones.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short quotation from public domain text.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: uncertain
notes: Literal extraction is straightforward. Motif labels are based on the fable’s
explicit plot and moral; comparison claims are omitted because the passage itself
does not support cross-text comparison.
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 supplied passage text was used; no external fable-index or motif-index identifiers were added.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:greek-aesop-fables-vernon-jones-gutenberg__l4159-l4175
passage_sha256=403fcda5ca0b3421a9af2998bcd74787d09790922fbb6b49f4ee51b12918092f