batch.motif.greek-aesop-fables-vernon-jones-gutenberg-l4729-l4754
---
record_id: batch.motif.greek-aesop-fables-vernon-jones-gutenberg-l4729-l4754
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/aesops-fables-vernon-jones.md
passage_locator:
label: THE STAG AND THE LION / THE IMPOSTOR / THE DOGS AND THE HIDES / THE LION,
THE FOX, AND THE ASS; lines 4729-4754
start: '4729'
end: '4754'
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: In one fable, hungry dogs try to drink a river dry to reach hides steeping
in it and die from excessive drinking. In another, a lion, fox, and ass hunt together;
the lion kills the ass for dividing the booty equally, and the fox then gives
nearly all to the lion, saying he learned from the ass's fate. The moral states
that one is happy who learns from others' misfortunes.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: A number of dogs are described as famished with hunger.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: The dogs see hides steeping in a river but cannot reach them because the water
is too deep.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:3
text: The dogs decide to drink from the river until it becomes shallow enough to
reach the hides.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:4
text: The dogs burst themselves with drinking before they can reach the hides.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:5
text: A lion, a fox, and an ass go hunting together and take a large booty.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:6
text: The lion requests that the ass divide the booty among them.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:7
text: The ass divides the booty into three equal parts and asks the others to choose.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:8
text: The lion becomes furious, attacks the ass, and tears him to pieces.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:9
text: The lion orders the fox to make a new division.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:10
text: The fox places almost all the booty in one heap for the lion and leaves only
a very small portion for himself.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:11
text: When asked how he learned to divide so well, the fox says he took a lesson
from the ass.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:12
text: The closing moral says that the happy person learns from the misfortunes of
others.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: Dogs
description: A number of famished dogs who try to reach hides in a river.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Lion
description: A hunting companion who demands division of the booty, kills the ass
after an equal division, and receives nearly all of the second division.
role_refs:
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Fox
description: A hunting companion who observes the ass's fate and then assigns nearly
all the booty to the lion.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Ass
description: A hunting companion who divides the booty equally and is killed by
the lion.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:6
roles:
- id: role:1
label: self-destructive seekers
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The dogs attempt to solve the obstacle by drinking the river and die before
reaching the hides.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: role:2
label: violent dominant claimant
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: The lion rejects an equal division by killing the ass and accepts a division
that gives him almost everything.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: role:3
label: prudent survivor and learner
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: The fox adjusts his division after seeing what happened to the ass and says
he learned from the ass.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: role:4
label: unfortunate example
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: The ass's equal division leads to his death and becomes the fox's lesson.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:6
- ev:7
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: river water as obstacle
literal_form: deep river water
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs:
- water
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: sym:2
label: unreachable hides
literal_form: hides steeping in a river
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: sym:3
label: divided booty
literal_form: hunting booty divided into shares
associated_figures:
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:4
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:5
- id: sym:4
label: smallest morsel
literal_form: the smallest possible morsel left for the fox
associated_figures:
- fig:2
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Dogs attempt to drink the river
summary: Hungry dogs see hides in deep river water, decide to drink the river shallow,
and die from drinking before reaching the hides.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: scene:2
label: Ass divides the hunt equally
summary: After a joint hunt, the ass divides the booty into three equal shares;
the lion reacts with fury and kills him.
figure_refs:
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: scene:3
label: Fox learns from the ass's fate
summary: The lion orders the fox to divide the booty; the fox gives the lion nearly
all of it and explains that he learned from the ass.
figure_refs:
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:3
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
- ev:7
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: self-destructive overreaching for an inaccessible object
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The dogs attempt an impossible or excessive solution to reach the hides and
die before attaining them.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
confidence: high
cautions: No supplied taxonomy family directly names this fable pattern.
- id: motif:2
label: learning from another's misfortune
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
basis: The fox changes his behavior after the ass is killed, and the explicit moral
praises learning from others' misfortunes.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
- ev:7
confidence: high
cautions: The taxonomy reference 'wisdom' is broad rather than a specific fable-index
motif.
- id: motif:3
label: unequal division under threat from a stronger partner
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The lion punishes an equal division and the fox survives by granting the
lion nearly all of the booty.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
confidence: high
cautions: This is a passage-level pattern, not matched to a supplied taxonomy family.
comparison_claims: []
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: 4729-4733
quote_or_summary: Famished dogs see hides steeping in a river but cannot reach them
because the water is too deep.
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: 4733-4736
quote_or_summary: The dogs decide to drink the river until it is shallow enough,
but they burst themselves with drinking before that happens.
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: 4738-4741
quote_or_summary: A lion, fox, and ass hunt together, take a large booty, and the
lion asks the ass to divide 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: summary
locator: 4741-4745
quote_or_summary: The ass divides everything into three equal parts; the lion becomes
furious, attacks the ass, and tears him to pieces.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/aesops-fables-vernon-jones.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: 4745-4748
quote_or_summary: The lion orders the fox to make a new division; the fox gives
almost all to the lion and keeps only the smallest morsel.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/aesops-fables-vernon-jones.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:6
type: quote
locator: 4748-4752
quote_or_summary: The fox replies that he "took a lesson from the Ass."
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/aesops-fables-vernon-jones.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short quotation.
- id: ev:7
type: quote
locator: '4754'
quote_or_summary: '"Happy is he who learns from the misfortunes of others."'
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/aesops-fables-vernon-jones.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short quotation.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: uncertain
notes: Extraction is based only on the supplied passage. Motif candidates are clear
at passage level, but taxonomy mapping is broad and should be reviewed.
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 supplied passage does not itself establish a specific cross-textual comparison.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:greek-aesop-fables-vernon-jones-gutenberg__l4729-l4754
passage_sha256=52d79faa911010c711e7c7918b159a4d8fb0166f74a7c973a56e032ed2c0ba20