batch.motif.buddhist-more-jataka-tales-babbitt-gutenberg-l722-l771
---
record_id: batch.motif.buddhist-more-jataka-tales-babbitt-gutenberg-l722-l771
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/more-jataka-tales-babbitt.md
passage_locator:
label: THE PENNY-WISE MONKEY / THE RED-BUD TREE / THE WOODPECKER AND THE LION /
THE OTTERS AND THE WOLF; lines 722-771
start: '722'
end: '771'
translation: More Jataka Tales
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: ''
summary: A male wolf seeks fresh fish for his mate. At a river, two otters catch
a large fish together but quarrel over how to divide it. They ask the wolf to
divide it for them. The wolf gives one otter the head, the other the tail, and
keeps the large middle portion as payment for settling the quarrel. The otters
realize he has taken the best part, and the wolf carries the fish home to his
mate.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: A wolf's mate says she longs to eat fresh fish, and the wolf goes to the river
to get some.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: Two otters at the riverbank catch a large fish together after one asks the
other for help.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:3
text: The otters disagree over division of the fish; each wants the part with the
head, and one tells the other to take the tail.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:4
text: The otters ask the wolf to divide the fish for them because they cannot agree.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:5
text: The wolf gives the tail to one otter, the head to the other, and keeps the
large middle part for himself.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:6
text: The otters silently recognize that the wolf has taken the best part of the
fish.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:7
text: The wolf tells his mate that he took the fish as pay for settling the otters'
quarrel.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: male Wolf
description: A land-dwelling wolf who goes to the river, acts as divider for the
otters, and keeps the middle part of the fish.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:7
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Wolf's mate
description: The wolf's mate, who longs to eat fresh fish and later asks how he
obtained it.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:7
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: first Otter
description: One of two otters who helps catch the fish and argues over receiving
the head portion.
role_refs:
- role:4
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: second Otter
description: One of two otters who helps catch the fish and argues over receiving
the head portion.
role_refs:
- role:4
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
roles:
- id: role:1
label: mediator or divider
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The otters ask the wolf to divide the fish for them, and he performs the
division.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- id: role:2
label: self-interested taker
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The wolf keeps the large middle part of the fish for himself and later calls
it payment.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:7
- id: role:3
label: recipient whose desire prompts action
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: Her wish for fresh fish prompts the wolf to go to the river.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:4
label: cooperative fish-catcher
assigned_to:
- fig:3
- fig:4
basis: The two otters catch the large fish together and bring it to land.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:5
label: disputant
assigned_to:
- fig:3
- fig:4
basis: The otters quarrel about which portion of the fish each should receive.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: river water
literal_form: river
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:3
- fig:4
taxonomy_refs:
- water
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: sym:2
label: large fish
literal_form: great fish / fresh fish
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:4
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:5
- ev:7
- id: sym:3
label: divided fish portions
literal_form: head, tail, and large middle part of the fish
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:3
- fig:4
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:5
- ev:6
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Wolf goes to the river for fish
summary: The wolf's mate desires fresh fish, and the wolf goes to the river to obtain
some.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Otters catch a large fish together
summary: Two otters see a large fish; one catches its tail, calls for help, and
both bring it to land.
figure_refs:
- fig:3
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: scene:3
label: Quarrel over division
summary: The otters dispute who should receive the head portion and who should receive
the tail.
figure_refs:
- fig:3
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: scene:4
label: Wolf divides the fish and keeps the best part
summary: The otters ask the wolf to divide the fish; he gives them the head and
tail and keeps the large middle portion.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:3
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: scene:5
label: Wolf reports his gain to his mate
summary: The wolf carries the fish home and tells his mate that he took it as payment
for settling the otters' quarrel.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: third-party arbiter profits from a quarrel
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The otters cannot agree over dividing the fish and invite the wolf to decide;
the wolf resolves the dispute in a way that gives him the best portion.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
- ev:7
confidence: high
cautions: The passage presents the event literally; any broader classification as
a trickster or legal satire motif requires comparison outside this passage.
- id: motif:2
label: loss through internal dispute
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The otters jointly obtain the fish but, because they quarrel over division,
end with inferior portions while the wolf takes the best part.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:5
- ev:6
confidence: high
cautions: The passage does not explicitly state a moral in the provided excerpt.
- id: motif:3
label: animal trickster-like opportunist
taxonomy_refs:
- trickster_boundary
basis: The wolf opportunistically intervenes in the otters' dispute and keeps the
valuable middle part while framing it as payment.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:7
confidence: medium
cautions: The available taxonomy label is broad; the passage supports opportunistic
deception or exploitation, but not an explicit boundary-crossing episode.
comparison_claims: []
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 722-727
quote_or_summary: The wolf's mate says she longs for fresh fish; the wolf says he
will get some and goes to the river.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/more-jataka-tales-babbitt.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: lines 728-739
quote_or_summary: Two otters at the riverbank see a large fish; one catches its
tail, is dragged, calls for help, and both otters bring the fish to land.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/more-jataka-tales-babbitt.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: lines 740-745
quote_or_summary: The otters propose dividing the fish, then dispute who should
receive the head portion and who should take the tail.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/more-jataka-tales-babbitt.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: lines 746-751
quote_or_summary: The otters address the wolf and ask him to divide the fish because
they cannot agree.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/more-jataka-tales-babbitt.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: lines 752-755
quote_or_summary: The wolf cuts off the tail for one otter, gives the head to the
other, and takes the large middle part for himself.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/more-jataka-tales-babbitt.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: lines 755-758
quote_or_summary: The otters stand silently and each thinks that the wolf has run
off with the best of the fish.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/more-jataka-tales-babbitt.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:7
type: summary
locator: lines 759-771
quote_or_summary: The wolf is pleased, brings the fish toward home, and tells his
mate he took it as payment for settling the otters' quarrel.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/more-jataka-tales-babbitt.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: uncertain
notes: Literal extraction is straightforward from the supplied passage. Motif labels
are descriptive and require human review for alignment with a controlled motif
index. No comparison claims were made because the supplied passage does not itself
establish an external 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 and metadata were used. The passage locator label mentions multiple tale titles, but the provided passage text contains only 'THE OTTERS AND THE WOLF.'
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:buddhist-more-jataka-tales-babbitt-gutenberg__l722-l771
passage_sha256=23e46aa463477efd91fc2f261b2ad133975930cb12853fe2b5bdab6fdb2ded9f