The fisherman and the little fish
Encyclopedia
The fisherman and the little fish is one of Aesop's fables and is numbered 18 in the Perry Index
. Babrius
records it in Greek and Avianus
in Latin. The story concerns a small fry caught by a fisherman that begs for its life on account of its size and suggests that waiting until it is larger would make it a more filling meal. The fisherman refuses, giving as his reason that every little helps and that it is stupid to give up a present advantage for an uncertain future gain. The fable was given further currency after Jean de la Fontaine
included it among his Fables Choisies (V.3).
The popularity of the fable in England was eventually overtaken by the similar story of The Hawk and the Nightingale
, which had the advantage of being reinforced by the proverb 'A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush'. La Fontaine had no such proverb in French to which to appeal and ends on the reflection that one possession is better than two promises (Un 'tiens' vaut mieux que deux 'tu l'auras). However, his English translator Charles Denis adapts the line to the circumstances and renders it as 'A fish in the pan is worth two in the pond'.
English illustrations in books have almost invariably pictured an angler sitting on the river bank and peering at the fish. The same theme is found on tiles and china from the 18th and 19th centuries in both England and France. The fable was also among the miniatures commissioned from the Punjabi Court painter Imam Baksh Lahori in 1837 by a French enthusiast but shows no originality of treatment.
Perry Index
The Perry Index is a widely-used index of "Aesop's Fables" or "Aesopica", the fables credited to Aesop, the story-teller who lived in ancient Greece between 620 and 560 BC...
. Babrius
Babrius
Babrius was the author of a collection of fables written in Greek. He collected many of the fables that are known to us today simply as Aesop's fables .Practically nothing is known of him...
records it in Greek and Avianus
Avianus
Avianus, a Latin writer of fables, generally placed in the 5th century, and identified as a pagan.The 42 fables which bear his name are dedicated to a certain Theodosius, whose learning is spoken of in most flattering terms. He may possibly be Macrobius Ambrosius Theodosius, the author of...
in Latin. The story concerns a small fry caught by a fisherman that begs for its life on account of its size and suggests that waiting until it is larger would make it a more filling meal. The fisherman refuses, giving as his reason that every little helps and that it is stupid to give up a present advantage for an uncertain future gain. The fable was given further currency after Jean de la Fontaine
Jean de La Fontaine
Jean de La Fontaine was the most famous French fabulist and one of the most widely read French poets of the 17th century. He is known above all for his Fables, which provided a model for subsequent fabulists across Europe and numerous alternative versions in France, and in French regional...
included it among his Fables Choisies (V.3).
The popularity of the fable in England was eventually overtaken by the similar story of The Hawk and the Nightingale
The Hawk and the Nightingale
The fable of The Hawk and the Nightingale is one of the earliest recorded in Greek and there have been many variations on the story since Classical times. The original version is numbered 4 in the Perry Index and the later Aesop version, sometimes going under the title "The Hawk, the Nightingale...
, which had the advantage of being reinforced by the proverb 'A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush'. La Fontaine had no such proverb in French to which to appeal and ends on the reflection that one possession is better than two promises (Un 'tiens' vaut mieux que deux 'tu l'auras). However, his English translator Charles Denis adapts the line to the circumstances and renders it as 'A fish in the pan is worth two in the pond'.
English illustrations in books have almost invariably pictured an angler sitting on the river bank and peering at the fish. The same theme is found on tiles and china from the 18th and 19th centuries in both England and France. The fable was also among the miniatures commissioned from the Punjabi Court painter Imam Baksh Lahori in 1837 by a French enthusiast but shows no originality of treatment.