batch.motif.greek-hesiod-homeric-hymns-evelyn-white-gutenberg-l8343-l8434
---
record_id: batch.motif.greek-hesiod-homeric-hymns-evelyn-white-gutenberg-l8343-l8434
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/hesiod-homeric-hymns-homerica.md
passage_locator:
label: THE PHOCAIS / THE MARGITES / THE CERCOPES / THE BATTLE OF FROGS AND MICE;
lines 8343-8434
start: '8343'
end: '8434'
translation: Hesiod, the Homeric Hymns, and Homerica
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: ''
summary: The passage opens The Battle of Frogs and Mice with an invocation to the
Muses and introduces a mock-heroic war between Mice and Frogs. A thirsty mouse,
Crumb-snatcher, meets Puff-jaw, king of the Frogs, at a lake. Puff-jaw proposes
guest-friendship and offers to carry him across the water. Crumb-snatcher recounts
his ancestry, foods, courage, and fears. Puff-jaw boasts of frogs' double life
on land and in water. During the crossing, Crumb-snatcher becomes terrified; a
water-snake appears, Puff-jaw dives to save himself, and the mouse drowns after
denouncing Puff-jaw's treachery and predicting vengeance by the Mice.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: The speaker invokes the Muses to come from Helicon and aid a newly written
lay about the war of Frogs and Mice.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: The war is introduced as an awful strife in which the Mice proved their valor
against the Frogs and are said to rival the exploits of the earth-born Giants.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:3
text: A thirsty mouse who has escaped a ferret drinks at a lake's brink and is noticed
by a loud-voiced frog.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:4
text: Puff-jaw asks the stranger's identity and parentage, promises guest-gifts
if he is worthy of friendship, and identifies himself as king of the Frogs.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:5
text: Puff-jaw names his parents as Mud-man and Waterlady, who mated by the banks
of Eridanus.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:6
text: 'Crumb-snatcher gives his own name and ancestry: son of Bread-nibbler and
Quern-licker, daughter of Ham-gnawer the king.'
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:7
text: Crumb-snatcher says he was born in a mouse-hole and nourished with figs, nuts,
and other foods, and he distinguishes mouse food from frog food.
category: setting
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- id: obs:8
text: Crumb-snatcher lists desirable human foods, including bread, cakes, ham, liver,
cheese, milk-curdled cheese, and honey-cake.
category: object
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:9
text: Crumb-snatcher claims courage in battle and says he can bite a sleeping man's
toe or heel without waking him.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:10
text: Crumb-snatcher says he especially fears the hawk, the ferret, and the trap
containing treacherous death.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:11
text: Puff-jaw says frogs have been given power by the Son of Chronos to live in
two elements, leaping on land and plunging under water.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: obs:12
text: Puff-jaw invites Crumb-snatcher to mount his back and hold tight so he may
be brought to the frog's house.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: obs:13
text: Crumb-snatcher mounts Puff-jaw's back, is initially pleased while land is
near, then becomes frightened when waves wash over him.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: obs:14
text: Crumb-snatcher uses his tail like a steering oar, prays to heaven to reach
land, and compares his transport to the bull carrying Europa to Crete.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: obs:15
text: A water-snake appears above the water, frightening both the frog and the mouse.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: obs:16
text: Puff-jaw dives to the bottom of the lake to escape death and leaves Crumb-snatcher
helpless in the water.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: obs:17
text: Crumb-snatcher sinks and rises repeatedly, but his wet fur weighs him down
and he dies.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: obs:18
text: Before dying, Crumb-snatcher accuses Puff-jaw of treachery, calls him a coward,
says heaven has an avenging eye, and predicts punishment by the host of Mice.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: Muses
description: Divine choir invoked to come from Helicon into the speaker's heart
and aid the lay.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Mice
description: Collective animal group said to prove valor against the Frogs and later
expected to punish Puff-jaw.
role_refs:
- role:2
- role:11
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:10
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Frogs
description: Collective animal group opposing the Mice; Puff-jaw is their honored
ruler in the pond.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Crumb-snatcher
description: A mouse, son of Bread-nibbler and Quern-licker, thirsty at the lake,
carried by Puff-jaw, abandoned, and drowned.
role_refs:
- role:4
- role:5
- role:8
- role:10
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:4
- ev:8
- ev:9
- ev:10
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Puff-jaw
description: A loud-voiced frog and king of the Frogs, son of Mud-man and Waterlady,
who offers hospitality and carries Crumb-snatcher before diving away from a water-snake.
role_refs:
- role:3
- role:4
- role:6
- role:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:7
- ev:8
- ev:9
- ev:10
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: Mud-man
description: Named father who brought up Puff-jaw.
role_refs:
- role:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: Waterlady
description: Named mother of Puff-jaw, mated with Mud-man by the banks of Eridanus.
role_refs:
- role:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: fig:8
name_or_label: Bread-nibbler
description: Named stout-hearted father of Crumb-snatcher.
role_refs:
- role:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: fig:9
name_or_label: Quern-licker
description: Named mother of Crumb-snatcher and daughter of Ham-gnawer the king.
role_refs:
- role:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: fig:10
name_or_label: Ham-gnawer
description: Named king and father of Quern-licker.
role_refs:
- role:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: fig:11
name_or_label: Son of Chronos
description: Divine figure said by Puff-jaw to have given frogs the power to live
in two elements.
role_refs:
- role:12
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: fig:12
name_or_label: water-snake
description: A horrid sight appearing with its neck upright above the water, causing
Puff-jaw to dive.
role_refs:
- role:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: fig:13
name_or_label: Europa
description: Named in Crumb-snatcher's comparison as a beloved load carried across
the sea to Crete by a bull.
role_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: fig:14
name_or_label: bull carrying Europa
description: Named in a simile as bearing Europa across the sea to Crete.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
roles:
- id: role:1
label: invoked poetic helpers
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The speaker prays for the choir of the Muses to aid the lay.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:2
label: warrior collective
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: The Mice are introduced as proving valor in war against the Frogs.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:3
label: opposing frog collective and ruler
assigned_to:
- fig:3
- fig:5
basis: The Frogs are the opposing side in the war; Puff-jaw identifies himself as
their honored ruler.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- id: role:4
label: potential guest-friends
assigned_to:
- fig:4
- fig:5
basis: Puff-jaw proposes friendship and guest-gifts, while Crumb-snatcher questions
how they can be friends given different natures.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: role:5
label: thirsty stranger at the shore
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: The mouse comes to the lake's brink thirsty and is addressed as a stranger.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: role:6
label: back-borne carrier
assigned_to:
- fig:5
- fig:14
basis: Puff-jaw offers his back and carries the mouse; the bull is mentioned as
carrying Europa across the sea.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:8
- id: role:7
label: named ancestor or parent
assigned_to:
- fig:6
- fig:7
- fig:8
- fig:9
- fig:10
basis: The passage gives genealogical parentage for Puff-jaw and Crumb-snatcher.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: role:8
label: abandoned passenger
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: Crumb-snatcher is left helpless in the water when Puff-jaw dives.
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: role:9
label: death-escaping or death-threatening water figure
assigned_to:
- fig:5
- fig:12
basis: The water-snake appears as a threat; Puff-jaw dives to escape black death.
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: role:10
label: dying accuser
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: As he dies, Crumb-snatcher accuses Puff-jaw of treachery and predicts vengeance.
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
- id: role:11
label: avenging host
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: Crumb-snatcher says the host of Mice will punish Puff-jaw.
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
- id: role:12
label: divine grantor of amphibious power
assigned_to:
- fig:11
basis: Puff-jaw says the Son of Chronos gave frogs power to dwell in two elements.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: Helicon
literal_form: mountain associated with the Muses' descent
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs:
- mountain
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: sym:2
label: lake water
literal_form: lake, shore, brink, waves, and underwater space crossed by frog and
mouse
associated_figures:
- fig:4
- fig:5
- fig:12
taxonomy_refs:
- water
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:7
- ev:8
- ev:9
- id: sym:3
label: water-snake
literal_form: snake rising with neck upright above the water
associated_figures:
- fig:12
taxonomy_refs:
- serpent
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: sym:4
label: mouse-hole
literal_form: underground mouse dwelling where Crumb-snatcher says he was born
associated_figures:
- fig:4
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: sym:5
label: trap
literal_form: piteous trap containing treacherous death feared by Crumb-snatcher
associated_figures:
- fig:4
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Invocation and war announcement
summary: The speaker invokes the Muses from Helicon and announces a war between
Mice and Frogs, comparing its exploits to those of the Giants.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Meeting at the lake brink
summary: A thirsty mouse drinks at the lake after escaping a ferret; Puff-jaw sees
him, asks his identity and descent, and offers friendship and gifts.
figure_refs:
- fig:4
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: scene:3
label: Genealogies and differing ways of life
summary: Puff-jaw and Crumb-snatcher state their names, parents, and social status;
Crumb-snatcher describes mouse foods, courage, fears, and the difference between
lake-dwellers and mouse life.
figure_refs:
- fig:4
- fig:5
- fig:6
- fig:7
- fig:8
- fig:9
- fig:10
symbol_refs:
- sym:4
- sym:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: scene:4
label: Invitation to cross the water
summary: Puff-jaw describes frogs as living in both land and water through a divine
grant and invites the mouse to ride on his back to his house.
figure_refs:
- fig:4
- fig:5
- fig:11
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: scene:5
label: Fearful crossing
summary: Crumb-snatcher mounts Puff-jaw, becomes terrified as waves wash over him,
steers with his tail, prays for land, and compares the crossing to Europa carried
by a bull.
figure_refs:
- fig:4
- fig:5
- fig:13
- fig:14
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: scene:6
label: Snake, abandonment, and drowning
summary: A water-snake appears; Puff-jaw dives away, leaving Crumb-snatcher to drown
in the lake.
figure_refs:
- fig:4
- fig:5
- fig:12
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: scene:7
label: Dying curse and predicted vengeance
summary: Crumb-snatcher accuses Puff-jaw of treachery and declares that heaven sees
and that the Mice will punish him.
figure_refs:
- fig:2
- fig:4
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: animal war in mock-heroic form
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The passage announces a war between Mice and Frogs and frames it in elevated
martial language, with Mice proving valor and rivaling Giants' exploits.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
confidence: high
cautions: No supplied taxonomy family directly names animal war or mock epic.
- id: motif:2
label: guest-friendship offered across a boundary
taxonomy_refs:
- sacred_exchange
basis: Puff-jaw asks the stranger's identity, promises guest-gifts, and invites
him to his house, but the relationship fails during the water crossing.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:7
- ev:9
- ev:10
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage uses guest-gift language, but the exchange is not completed
and the taxonomy label is only approximate.
- id: motif:3
label: dangerous crossing between land and water
taxonomy_refs:
- departure
basis: Crumb-snatcher leaves the shore on Puff-jaw's back, enters the water, becomes
afraid, and dies when abandoned after a water-snake appears.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:8
- ev:9
confidence: medium
cautions: This is a short failed journey rather than a full departure-cycle narrative.
- id: motif:4
label: boundary creature with double life
taxonomy_refs:
- trickster_boundary
basis: Puff-jaw says frogs can live in two elements, on land and under water, and
then his amphibious ability lets him escape while the mouse dies.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:9
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage supports boundary-crossing and treacherous outcome, but does
not explicitly call Puff-jaw a trickster.
- id: motif:5
label: treacherous abandonment leading to vengeance
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Crumb-snatcher says Puff-jaw tricked and cast him into the water, and predicts
divine notice and punishment by the host of Mice.
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- ev:10
confidence: high
cautions: No supplied taxonomy family directly names betrayal-and-vengeance.
- id: motif:6
label: serpent threat in water
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: A water-snake appears above the water as a horrid sight, prompting Puff-jaw
to dive and triggering the mouse's death.
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
confidence: high
cautions: The supplied taxonomy includes serpent as a symbol but not as a motif
family.
comparison_claims:
- id: claim:1
claim: The narrator explicitly frames the Frogs-and-Mice war as rivaling the exploits
of the earth-born Giants.
claim_level: same_function
target: Giants' martial exploits
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: medium
limitations: The comparison is rhetorical within the passage and does not establish
identity with a Giant-war myth.
- id: claim:2
claim: Crumb-snatcher compares his ride on Puff-jaw across the water to Europa being
carried across the sea to Crete by a bull.
claim_level: visual_similarity
target: Europa carried over the sea by a bull
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: high
limitations: The passage gives a simile of transport over water, not a full parallel
to the Europa myth.
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: ll. 1-8
quote_or_summary: The speaker invokes the Muses from Helicon and announces the war
of Mice against Frogs, saying the Mice rivaled the exploits of the earth-born
Giants.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/hesiod-homeric-hymns-homerica.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: ll. 9-12
quote_or_summary: A thirsty mouse who had escaped a ferret drinks at the lake's
brink and is spotted by a pond-larker.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/hesiod-homeric-hymns-homerica.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: ll. 13-23
quote_or_summary: Puff-jaw asks the stranger's identity and parentage, promises
gifts if he is worthy of friendship, calls himself king of the Frogs, and names
Mud-man and Waterlady as his parents.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/hesiod-homeric-hymns-homerica.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: ll. 24-31
quote_or_summary: Crumb-snatcher names himself, his father Bread-nibbler, his mother
Quern-licker, and his grandfather Ham-gnawer; he says he was born in a mouse-hole
and fed on figs, nuts, and dainties.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/hesiod-homeric-hymns-homerica.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: ll. 32-43
quote_or_summary: Crumb-snatcher contrasts his nature with the frog's water-life
and lists human foods he eats, including bread, cakes, ham, liver, cheese, milk-curdled
cheese, and honey-cake.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/hesiod-homeric-hymns-homerica.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: ll. 44-55
quote_or_summary: Crumb-snatcher claims battlefield courage, says he can bite sleeping
men, and names hawk, ferret, and trap as his great fears; he rejects vegetables
as frog food.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/hesiod-homeric-hymns-homerica.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:7
type: summary
locator: ll. 56-64
quote_or_summary: Puff-jaw says frogs have many marvels, that the Son of Chronos
gave them power to live on land and in water, and invites the mouse to mount his
back to visit his house.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/hesiod-homeric-hymns-homerica.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:8
type: summary
locator: ll. 65-81
quote_or_summary: The mouse rides on Puff-jaw's back, grows terrified as waves wash
over him, uses his tail like an oar, prays for land, and compares the crossing
to the bull carrying Europa to Crete.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/hesiod-homeric-hymns-homerica.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:9
type: summary
locator: ll. 82-92
quote_or_summary: A water-snake rises above the water; Puff-jaw dives to the lake
bottom to escape death and leaves the mouse, who sinks and rises until his wet
fur weighs him down.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/hesiod-homeric-hymns-homerica.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:10
type: summary
locator: ll. 93-98
quote_or_summary: The dying mouse accuses Puff-jaw of treachery, calls him a coward,
says heaven has an avenging eye, and predicts punishment by the host of Mice.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek/project-gutenberg/hesiod-homeric-hymns-homerica.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: medium
notes: Passage-level actions, figures, and symbols are explicit. Motif taxonomy
mapping is partly approximate because the supplied motif families do not include
mock-heroic animal war, betrayal, or animal fable categories.
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 the supplied passage and metadata. Quotations avoided in favor of concise summaries.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:greek-hesiod-homeric-hymns-evelyn-white-gutenberg__l8343-l8434
passage_sha256=e78b0896ad6d1306568afa7e1ec079dc83e0c086c4819ab4c6f7a3aa15844aea