Poetry Codex

French

Jean de La Fontaine

1621–1695

Jean de La Fontaine (1621–1695) was a French poet born at Château-Thierry in Champagne. After an unsettled early career in law and the administration of forests and waters, he found patrons in Paris, among them Nicolas Fouquet and later Madame de La Sablière, and became one of the glories of the age of Louis XIV; he was elected to the Académie française in 1684.

His Fables, published in collected books between 1668 and 1694, retell the stories of Aesop, Phaedrus and the Indian tradition in supple, irregular verse of great wit and economy. Under the guise of animals they observe the manners, vanities and cruelties of court and town. This selection follows the English verse translation by Walter Thornbury (London, 1886), printed with Gustave Doré's illustrations.

Poems (241)

  1. To Monseigneur the Dauphin
  2. The Grasshopper and the Ant
  3. The Raven and the Fox
  4. The Frog That Wished to Make Herself as Big as the Ox
  5. The Two Mules
  6. The Wolf and the Dog
  7. The Heifer, the She-Goat, and the Lamb, in Partnership with the Lion
  8. The Wallet
  9. The Swallow and the Little Birds
  10. The Town Rat and the Country Rat
  11. The Man and His Image
  12. The Dragon with Many Heads, and the Dragon with Many Tails
  13. The Wolf and the Lamb
  14. The Robbers and the Ass
  15. Death and the Woodcutter
  16. Simonides Rescued by the Gods
  17. Death and the Unhappy Man
  18. The Wolf Turned Shepherd
  19. The Child and the Schoolmaster
  20. The Pullet and the Pearl
  21. The Drones and the Bees
  22. The Oak and the Reed
  23. Against Those Who Are Hard to Please
  24. The Council Held by the Rats
  25. The Wolf Pleading Against the Fox Before the Ape
  26. The Middle-Aged Man and the Two Widows
  27. The Fox and the Stork
  28. The Lion and the Gnat
  29. The Ass Laden with Sponges, and the Ass Laden with Salt
  30. The Lion and the Rat
  31. The Dove and the Ant
  32. The Astrologer Who Let Himself Fall Into the Well
  33. The Hare and the Frogs
  34. The Two Bulls and the Frog
  35. The Peacock Complaining to Juno
  36. The Bat and the Two Weasels
  37. The Bird Wounded by an Arrow
  38. The Miller, His Son, and the Ass
  39. The Cock and the Fox
  40. The Frogs Who Asked for a King
  41. The Dog and Her Companion
  42. The Fox and the Grapes
  43. The Eagle and the Beetle
  44. The Raven Who Wished to Imitate the Eagle
  45. The Wolves and the Sheep
  46. The Cat Changed Into a Woman
  47. Philomel and Progne
  48. The Lion and the Ass
  49. The Cat and the Old Rat
  50. A Will Interpreted by Æsop
  51. The Lion in Love
  52. The Fox and the Goat
  53. The Shepherd and the Sea
  54. The Drunkard and His Wife
  55. King Gaster and the Members
  56. The Monkey and the Dolphin
  57. The Eagle, the Wild Sow, and the Cat
  58. The Miser Who Lost His Treasure
  59. The Gout and the Spider
  60. The Eye of the Master
  61. The Wolf and the Stork
  62. The Lion Defeated by Man
  63. The Swan and the Cook
  64. The Wolf, the Goat, and the Kid
  65. The Wolf, the Mother, and the Child
  66. The Lion Grown Old
  67. The Drowned Woman
  68. The Weasel in the Granary
  69. The Lark and Her Little Ones with the Owner of a Field
  70. The Fly and the Ant
  71. The Gardener and His Master
  72. The Woodman and Mercury
  73. The Ass and the Little Dog
  74. Man and the Wooden Idol
  75. The Jay Dressed in Peacock's Plumes
  76. The Little Fish and the Fisherman
  77. Battle Between the Rats and Weasels
  78. The Camel and the Drift-Wood
  79. The Frog and the Rat
  80. The Old Woman and Her Servants
  81. The Animals Sending a Tribute to Alexander
  82. The Horse Wishing to Be Revenged on the Stag
  83. The Fox and the Bust
  84. The Horse and the Wolf
  85. The Saying of Socrates
  86. The Old Man and His Children
  87. The Oracle and the Impious Man
  88. The Mountain in Labour
  89. Fortune and the Little Child
  90. The Earthen Pot and the Iron Pot
  91. The Hare's Ears
  92. The Fox with His Tail Cut Off
  93. The Satyr and the Passer-by
  94. The Doctors
  95. The Labouring Man and His Children
  96. The Hen with the Golden Eggs
  97. The Ass That Carried the Relics
  98. The Serpent and the File
  99. The Hare and the Partridge
  100. The Stag and the Vine
  101. The Lion Going to War
  102. The Ass in the Lion's Skin
  103. The Eagle and the Owl
  104. The Shepherd and the Lion
  105. The Lion and the Hunter
  106. Phœbus and Boreas
  107. The Bear and the Two Friends
  108. Jupiter and the Farmer
  109. The Stag Viewing Himself in the Stream
  110. The Cockerel, the Cat, and the Little Rat
  111. The Fox, the Monkey, and the Other Animals
  112. The Mule That Boasted of His Family
  113. The Old Man and the Ass
  114. The Countryman and the Serpent
  115. The Hare and the Tortoise
  116. The Sick Lion and the Fox
  117. The Ass and His Masters
  118. The Sun and the Frogs
  119. The Carter Stuck in the Mud
  120. The Dog and the Shadow
  121. The Bird-Catcher, the Hawk, and the Skylark
  122. The Horse and the Ass
  123. The Charlatan
  124. The Young Widow
  125. Discord
  126. The Animals Sick of the Plague
  127. The Rat Who Retired from the World
  128. The Heron
  129. The Man Badly Married
  130. The Maiden
  131. The Wishes
  132. The Vultures and the Pigeons
  133. The Court of the Lion
  134. The Milk-Maid and the Milk-Pail
  135. The Curate and the Corpse
  136. The Man Who Runs After Fortune, and the Man Who Waits for Her
  137. The Two Fowls
  138. The Coach and the Fly
  139. The Ingratitude and Injustice of Men Towards Fortune
  140. An Animal in the Moon
  141. The Fortune-Teller
  142. The Cobbler and the Banker
  143. The Cat, the Weasel, and the Little Rabbit
  144. The Lion, the Wolf, and the Fox
  145. The Head and the Tail of the Serpent
  146. The Dog Which Carried Round His Neck His Master's Dinner
  147. Death and the Dying Man
  148. The Power of Fables
  149. The Bear and the Amateur of Gardening
  150. The Man and the Flea
  151. The Woman and the Secret
  152. Tircis and Amaranth
  153. The Joker and the Fishes
  154. The Rat and the Oyster
  155. The Two Friends
  156. The Pig, the Goat, and the Sheep
  157. The Rat and the Elephant
  158. The Funeral of the Lioness
  159. The Bashaw and the Merchant
  160. The Horoscope
  161. The Torrent and the River
  162. The Ass and the Dog
  163. The Two Dogs and the Dead Ass
  164. The Advantage of Being Clever
  165. The Wolf and the Hunter
  166. Jupiter and the Thunderbolts
  167. The Falcon and the Capon
  168. The Two Pigeons
  169. Education
  170. The Madman Who Sold Wisdom
  171. The Cat and the Rat
  172. Democritus and the Abderanians
  173. The Oyster and Its Claimants
  174. The Fraudulent Trustee
  175. Jupiter and the Traveller
  176. The Ape and the Leopard
  177. The Acorn and the Gourd
  178. The School-Boy, the Pedant, and the Nursery Gardener
  179. The Cat and the Fox
  180. The Sculptor and the Statue of Jupiter
  181. The Mouse Metamorphosed Into a Girl
  182. The Monkey and the Cat
  183. The Wolf and the Starved Dog
  184. The Wax Candle
  185. "not Too Much."
  186. The Two Rats, the Fox, and the Egg
  187. The Cormorant and the Fishes
  188. The Husband, the Wife, and the Robber
  189. The Shepherd and the King
  190. The Two Men and the Treasure
  191. The Shepherd and His Flock
  192. The Kite and the Nightingale
  193. The Fish and the Shepherd Who Played on the Clarionet
  194. The Man and the Snake
  195. The Tortoise and the Two Ducks
  196. The Two Adventurers and the Talisman
  197. The Miser and His Friend
  198. The Wolf and the Peasants
  199. The Rabbits
  200. The Swallow and the Spider
  201. The Partridge and the Fowls
  202. The Lion
  203. The Dog Whose Ears Were Cut
  204. The Two Parrots, the Monarch, and His Son
  205. The Peasant of the Danube
  206. The Lioness and She-Bear
  207. The Merchant, the Nobleman, the Shepherd, and the King's Son
  208. The Old Man and the Three Young Men
  209. The Gods as Instructors of Jupiter's Son
  210. The Owl and the Mice
  211. The Companions of Ulysses
  212. The Farmer, the Dog, and the Fox
  213. The Dream of an Inhabitant of Mogul
  214. The Two Goats
  215. The Lion, the Ape, and the Two Asses
  216. The Wolf and the Fox
  217. The Sick Stag
  218. The Cat and the Two Sparrows
  219. The Miser and the Ape
  220. The Old Cat and the Young Mouse
  221. The Bat, the Bush, and the Duck
  222. The Eagle and the Magpie
  223. The Quarrel of the Dogs and the Cats; and, Also, That of the Cats and the Mice
  224. Love and Folly
  225. The Wolf and the Fox (How comes this general discontent?)
  226. The Crab and Its Daughter
  227. The Forest and the Woodman
  228. The Fox, the Flies, and the Hedgehog
  229. The Hawk, the King, and the Falcon
  230. The Fox and the Turkeys
  231. The Crow, the Gazelle, the Tortoise, and the Rat
  232. The English Fox
  233. The Ape
  234. The Fox, the Wolf, and the Horse
  235. The League of the Rats
  236. A Scythian Philosopher
  237. Daphnis and Alcimadura
  238. The Elephant and Jupiter's Monkey
  239. The Madman and the Philosopher
  240. The Frogs and the Sun
  241. The Arbitrator, Almoner, and Hermit

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