Fables are a literary genre. It is a story that contains irony or a clear lesson. It has a short structure and uses metaphors, so that the theme of a lesson or a profound truth is reflected in a simple story.
The storyline of the fable is good or bad for the future of the fable. There are some famous Chinese fables such as "Pulling Up Seedlings to Help Them Grow", "Contradicting Yourself", "Zheng Ren Buying Shoes", "Waiting for the Rabbit", "Carving a Boat to Seek a Sword", "Drawing a Snake to Add Feet" and so on, and the famous story "The Peasant and the Serpent" in the "Aesop's Fables" of Ancient Greece enjoys a high popularity in the world.
One of its successes is that the stories are highly readable, and people, regardless of their cultural level, can realize the truth in the concise and clear stories.
Expanded profile:
Introduction of famous fables:
1. Pulling Up Seedlings to Help Them Grow
Anciently, there was a man who wished that the seedlings in his field would grow faster, and went to the edge of the field to watch them every day. However, one day, two days, three days, the seedlings did not seem to grow at all.
He then went around the field anxiously, saying to himself, "I have to think of a way to help them grow. "One day, when he finally thought of a way, he rushed out into the field and pulled the seedlings, one by one, up higher. He worked from noon until sunset, exhausted.
When he returned home, he said to his son while panting, "I'm exhausted, and my efforts were not in vain; the seedlings have grown a great deal." His son didn't understand what was going on and ran out into the field to see that the seedlings had all died.
Moral: It is a metaphor for seeking quick success regardless of the law of development of things, but making things worse.
2. The Farmer and the Snake
On a cold winter's day, a farmer returning home from a market found a frozen snake by the roadside. He took pity on it and put it in his arms.
When the heat from his body warmed the snake, the snake quickly awoke, revealed its cruel nature, and inflicted a fatal wound on the farmer by biting him. Before he died, the farmer said, "I even saved a poor poisonous snake, I deserve this kind of retribution!"
Moral: This story is to say that one must distinguish between good and evil, and only extend a helping hand to those who are good. Even if you are kind to those who are evil, their nature will not change.
3, waiting for the rabbit
Legend has it that in the Warring States period Song, there is a farmer, sunrise and sunset. Encountered a good year, but also just enough to eat and wear warm; in case of a disaster, can be starving. He wanted to improve his life, but he was too lazy, timid and small, doing everything is lazy and afraid, always want to come across the door of the unexpected wealth.
A miracle finally happened. One day in the late fall, he was plowing in the field, and there were people hunting around him. There was a lot of yelling and shouting, and the frightened beasts were running for their lives. Suddenly, one of the rabbits, without a second thought, ran headlong into the roots of a tree at the edge of his field.
That day, he had a good meal. He was a good man, and from then on, he did not farm anymore. All day long, he guarded the magical tree root and waited for a miracle.
Moral: Use this story to criticize those who do not know how to change and stick to the dogmatic way of thinking.
Baidu Encyclopedia - Fables