Aesop short. Who is Aesop: biography, creativity and interesting facts

Life story
Aesop (Esop) is considered the founder of the fable as a genre, as well as the creator artistic language allegories - Aesopian language, which has not lost its relevance from ancient times to the present day. In the darkest periods of history, when one could lose one’s head for speaking truthfully, humanity did not fall into muteness only because it had Aesopian language in its arsenal - it could express its thoughts, views, protests in stories from the lives of animals, birds, fish .
With the help of fables, Aesop taught humanity the basics of wisdom. “Using animals in the form in which they are still depicted on heraldic coats of arms, the ancients passed on from generation to generation great truth life... - wrote Gilbert Chesterton. - If a knight's lion is fierce and terrible, he is indeed fierce and terrible; If the sacred ibis stands on one leg, it is doomed to stand that way forever.
In this language, arranged like a huge animal alphabet, the most ancient philosophical truths. Just as a child learns the letter “A” from the word “stork”, the letter “B” from the word “bull”, the letter “B” from the word “wolf”, a person learns simple and great truths from simple and strong creatures - the heroes of fables.” .
And this never-silent humanity, which owes so much to Aesop, still does not know for sure whether such a person really existed, or whether he is a collective person.
According to legend, Aesop was born in the 6th century BC. in Phrygia (Asia Minor), was a slave and then a freedman. For some time he lived at the court of the Lydian king Croesus in Sardis. Later, while in Delphi, he was accused of sacrilege by the priestly aristocracy and thrown from a cliff.
A whole book of funny stories about his life and adventures has been preserved. Despite the fact that Aesop, according to legend, was ugly and hunchbacked, and also foul-mouthed, he became a real hero folk legends, telling about his bold speeches against the rich and nobility, about his disgrace of the false wisdom of the ruling elite.
The book “Outstanding Portraits of Antiquity” (1984) by the German archaeologist, historian and art critic Hermann Hafner presents a drawing on a drinking vessel made in the 5th century BC. in Athens (kept in the Vatican). It grotesquely depicts a hunchbacked counterpart with a fox, who, judging by her gestures, is telling him something. Scientists believe that the drawing depicts Aesop.
In the same book, Hafner claims that in Athens during the reign of Demetrius of Phalerum (317-307 BC), a statue of Aesop created by Lysippos was placed next to the group of “Seven Wise Men,” which indicates the high veneration of the fabulist and two centuries after his death. It is believed that under Demetrius of Phalerum a collection of Aesop's fables appeared, compiled by a person unknown to us. “In such a compiler, apparently, there was something great and humane,” as Chesterton rightly noted, “something from the human future and the human past...”
A collection of 426 fables in prose has been preserved under the name of Aesop. Among them there are many stories familiar to us. For example, “A hungry fox noticed hanging bunches of grapes on one vine. She wanted to get them, but couldn’t and left, saying to herself they were still green.” Or “The wolf once saw how the shepherds in the hut were eating a sheep. He came close and said, “What a fuss you would make if I did this!”
Fables from this collection of writers different eras attached literary form. In the 1st century AD The Roman poet Phaedrus became famous for this, and in the 2nd century the Greek writer Vabrius became famous. In the Middle Ages, the fables of Aesop and Phaedrus were published in special collections and were very popular. Modern fabulists La Fontaine in France, Lessing in Germany, I.I. drew their plots from them. Khemnitser, A.E. Izmailov, I.A. Krylov in Russia.
Of the Russian prose writers, M.E. was the most masterly in Aesopian language. Saltykov-Shchedrin. His tales " The wise minnow", "Crucian-idealist", "Eagle-philanthropist" and others are an excellent example of Aesop's mastery.

Old Greek Αἴσωπος

legendary ancient Greek poet and fabulist

around 600 BC

short biography

- semi-mythical ancient Greek fabulist who lived in the 6th century BC. e. He is considered the founder of the fable genre; The allegorical manner of expressing thoughts that is used to this day is named after him - Aesopian language.

Today it is not known for certain whether such an author of the fables actually existed or whether they belonged to to different persons, and the image of Aesop is collective. Information about his biography is often contradictory and historically unconfirmed. Herodotus first mentions Aesop. According to his version, Aesop served as a slave, and his master was a certain Iadmon from the island of Samos, who later granted him freedom. He lived when the Egyptian king Amasis reigned, i.e. in 570-526 BC e. The Delphians killed him, for which the descendants of Iadmon subsequently received a ransom.

Tradition calls Phrygia (Asia Minor) the homeland of Aesop. According to some sources, Aesop was at the court of King Croesus of Lydia. Centuries later, Heraclides of Pontus would attribute Aesop's origins from Thrace, and name a certain Xanthus as his first master. At the same time, this information is the author’s own conclusions made on the basis of Herodotus’ data. In Aristophanes' "Wasps" you can find information about the circumstances of his death, i.e. about the false accusation of stealing property from the temple at Delphi and about the fable “About the Beetle and the Eagle” allegedly told by Aesop before his death. In another century, the statements of characters in comedy will be perceived as historical fact. At the end of the 4th century. comedian Alexid, whose pen the comedy “Aesop” belonged to, talks about his involvement with the seven wise men and his relationship with King Croesus. In Lysippos, who lived at the same time, Aesop already heads this glorious cohort.

The main plot of Aesop's biography arose towards the end of the 4th century BC. e. and was embodied in several editions of the “Biography of Aesop”, written in in native language. If the early authors did not say anything about the features of the fabulist’s appearance, then in the “Biography” Aesop appears as a hunchbacked freak, but at the same time a wit and a great sage, who can easily deceive the owner and representatives of the upper class. Aesop's fables are not even mentioned in this version.

If in ancient world no one questioned the historicity of the fabulist’s personality, then in the 16th century. Luther first discovered in this issue discussion. A number of researchers in the 18th and 19th centuries. talked about the legendary and mythical nature of the image; in the 20th century, opinions were divided; some authors have argued that a historical prototype of Aesop may well have existed.

Be that as it may, Aesop is considered the author of more than four hundred fables told in prose. Most likely, over a long period of time they were transmitted to orally. In the IV-III centuries. BC e. 10 books of fables were compiled by Demetrius of Thales, but after the 9th century. n. e. this vault was lost. Subsequently, Aesop's fables were translated into Latin by other authors (Phaedrus, Flavius Avianus); the name of Babrius remained in history, who, borrowing stories from Aesop, set them out in Greek in poetic form. Aesop's fables, the main characters of which in the vast majority of cases were animals, became a rich source for borrowing plots by fabulists of subsequent times. In particular, they served as sources of inspiration for J. Lafontaine, G. Lessing, I.A. Krylova.

Biography from Wikipedia

Biography in the ancient tradition

Was there historical figure- it’s impossible to say. He was first mentioned by Herodotus, who reports (II, 134) that Aesop was a slave of a certain Iadmon from the island of Samos, then was set free, lived during the time of the Egyptian king Amasis (570-526 BC) and was killed by the Delphians ; for his death, Delphi paid a ransom to the descendants of Iadmon.

More than a hundred years later, Heraclides of Pontus writes that Aesop came from Thrace, was a contemporary of Pherecydes, and his first master was called Xanthus. But this data is extracted from more early story Herodotus through unreliable inferences (for example, Thrace as the birthplace of Aesop is inspired by the fact that Herodotus mentions Aesop in connection with the Thracian heteroa Rhodopis, who was also a slave to Iadmon). Aristophanes ("Wasps") already provides details about Aesop's death - the wandering motif of a planted cup, which served as the reason for his accusation, and the fable of the eagle and the beetle, which he told before his death. A century later, this statement of Aristophanes’ heroes is repeated as historical fact. The comedian Plato (late 5th century) already mentions the posthumous reincarnations of Aesop’s soul. The comedian Alexis (late 4th century), who wrote the comedy “Aesop,” pits his hero against Solon, that is, he already interweaves the legend of Aesop into the cycle of legends about the seven wise men and King Croesus. His contemporary Lysippos also knew this version, depicting Aesop at the head of the seven wise men. Slavery at Xanthus, connection with the seven sages, death from the treachery of the Delphic priests - all these motives became links in the subsequent Aesopian legend, the core of which was formed by the end of the 4th century. BC e.

The most important monument of this tradition was the anonymous late antique novel (on Greek), known as "The Life of Aesop". The novel has survived in several editions: its oldest fragments on papyrus date back to the 2nd century. n. e.; in Europe since the 11th century. The Byzantine edition of the Biography came into circulation.

In "Biography" important role plays Aesop's deformity (not mentioned by early authors), Phrygia (a stereotypical place associated with slaves) becomes his homeland instead of Thrace, Aesop appears as a sage and joker, fooling kings and his master, a stupid philosopher. In this plot, surprisingly, Aesop’s fables themselves play almost no role; the anecdotes and jokes told by Aesop in his “Biography” are not included in the collection of “Aesop’s fables” that has come down to us from antiquity and are quite far from it in terms of genre. The image of the ugly, wise and cunning “Phrygian slave” in finished form goes to the new European tradition.

Antiquity did not doubt the historicity of Aesop. Luther first questioned it in the 16th century. Eighteenth-century philology substantiated this doubt (Richard Bentley); nineteenth-century philology took it to its extreme: Otto Crusius and after him Rutherford asserted the mythical nature of Aesop with a decisiveness characteristic of the hypercriticism of their era.

Heritage

Aesopus moralisatus, 1485

A collection of fables (out of 426) has been preserved under the name of Aesop. short works) in prose presentation. There is reason to assume that in the era of Aristophanes (end of the 5th century) in Athens a written collection of Aesop's fables was known, from which children were taught at school; “You are ignorant and lazy, you haven’t even learned Aesop,” says one thing from Aristophanes actor. These were prosaic retellings, without any artistic decoration. In fact, the so-called “Aesop's Collection” included fables from various eras.

In the 3rd century BC. e. his fables were recorded in 10 books by Demetrius of Phalerum (c. 350 - c. 283 BC). This collection was lost after the 9th century. n. e.

In the 1st century, the freedman of Emperor Augustus, Phaedrus, translated these fables into Latin iambic verse (many of Phaedrus’s fables are of original origin), and Avian, around the 4th century, rearranged 42 fables into Latin elegiac distich; in the Middle Ages, Avian's fables, despite their not very high artistic level, were very popular. Latin versions of many of Aesop's fables, with the addition of later tales and then medieval fabliaux, formed the so-called collection "Romulus". About 100 n. e. Babrius, who apparently lived in Syria, a Roman by origin, set out Aesop’s fables in Greek verses in the size of a holyammb. The works of Babrius were included by Planud (1260-1310) in his famous collection, which influenced later fabulists.

Aesop 150 BC e. (Villa Albani collection), Rome

Interest in Aesop's fables extended to his personality; in the absence of reliable information about him, they resorted to legend. Phrygian talker, allegorically blaspheming powerful of the world This, naturally, seemed to be a grumpy and angry man, like Homer’s Thersites, and therefore the portrait of Thersites, depicted in detail by Homer, was transferred to Aesop. He was presented as hunchbacked, lame, with the face of a monkey - in a word, ugly in all respects and directly opposite to the divine beauty of Apollo; This is how he was depicted in sculpture, by the way - in that interesting statue that has survived to us.

Martin Luther discovered that Aesop's book of fables is not the sole work of one author, but a collection of older and newer fables, and that the traditional image of Aesop is the fruit of a “poetic tale.”

Aesop's fables have been translated (often revised) into many languages of the world, including by the famous fabulists Jean La Fontaine and I.A. Krylov.

In the USSR, the most complete collection of Aesop's fables translated by M. L. Gasparov was published by the Nauka publishing house in 1968.

In Western literary criticism, Aesop's fables (the so-called "esopics") are usually identified according to Edwin Perry's reference book (see Perry Index), where 584 works are systematized mainly according to linguistic, chronological and paleographic criteria.

Some fables

White Jackdaw
Ox and Lion
Camel
Wolf and Crane
Wolf and Shepherds
Crows and other birds
Crows and Birds
Raven and fox
Jackdaw and Dove
Dove and Crows
Rook and Fox
Two friends and a bear
Two cancers
Two frogs
Wild Goat and grape branch
Wild dog
Hare and Frogs
Zeus and Camel
Zeus and shame
Snake and Peasant
Boar and Fox
Goat and Shepherd
Peasant and his sons
Hen and Swallow
Chicken and Egg
Partridge and Hens
Swallow and other birds
Lion and Donkey
Lion and Goat
Lion and Mosquito
Lion and Bear
Lion and mouse
Lion with other animals on the hunt
Lion, Wolf and Fox
Lion, Fox and Donkey
Bat
Fox and Stork
Fox and Ram
Fox and Dove
Fox and Woodcutter
Fox and Donkey
Fox and grapes
Horse and Donkey
Lioness and Fox
Frog, Rat and Crane
Frogs and Snake
Mouse and Frog
City Mouse and Country Mouse
Both chickens
Both frogs
Deer
Deer and Lion
Eagle and Jackdaw
Eagle and Fox
Eagle and Turtle
Donkey and Goat
Donkey and Fox
Donkey and Horse
Donkey, Rook and Shepherd
Father and Sons
Peacock and Jackdaw
Shepherd and Wolf
Shepherd joker
Rooster and Diamond
Rooster and Servant
Dog and Ram
Dog and Wolf
Dog and piece of meat
Old Lion and Fox
Three bulls and a lion
Reed and Olive Tree
Boastful pentathlete
Man and Partridge
Tortoise and Hare
Jupiter and Snake
Jupiter and Bees
Lamb and Wolf

Literature

Translations

In the series: “Collection Budé”: Esope. Fables. Texte établi et traduit par E. Chambry. 5e circulation 2002. LIV, 324 p.

Russian translations:

Esop's fables with moral teaching and notes by Roger Letrange, republished, and on Russian language transferred to St. Petersburg, office of the Academy of Sciences by secretary Sergei Volchkov. St. Petersburg, 1747. 515 pp. (reprints)
Esop's fables with fables of the Latin poet Philelphus, from the latest French translation, full description life of Ezopova... supplied by Mr. Bellegarde, now again translated into Russian by D. T. M., 1792. 558 pp.
Complete collection of Aesop's fables... M., 1871. 132 pp.
Aesop's Fables. / Per. M. L. Gasparova. (Series " Literary monuments"). M.: Nauka, 1968. 320 pp. 30,000 copies.
- reprint in the same series: M., 1993.
- reprint: Ancient fable. M.: Artist. lit. 1991. pp. 23-268.
- reprint: . Commandments. Fables. Biography / trans. Gasparova M. L. - Rostov-on-Don: Phoenix, 2003. - 288 p. - ISBN 5-222-03491-7

Many of the plots of Aesop's short moral stories are familiar to everyone since childhood. It is unlikely that anyone has not heard about the fox who took the cheese from the raven by cunning, or about the sons who dug up the entire vineyard in search of treasure.

Aesop was born and lived in the 6th century BC. e. The most famous legends they say that, unfortunately, the fabulist was a slave. This theory became widespread thanks to the works of the historian Herodotus.

Popularity of the fabulist

IN Ancient Greece everyone knew who Aesop was. His fables were constantly passed on from mouth to mouth, they were part of school curriculum. It was Aesop who was the first fabulist to describe human vices through images of animals and ridicule them. He focused on a variety of human weaknesses: pride and greed, laziness and deception, stupidity and deceit. His sharp, satirical fables often brought listeners to tears. And often even rulers asked to tell them in order to amuse their audience.

Fables that have come down to us through the centuries

The stories that Aesop invented fascinated listeners with their brevity, laconism, satire and wisdom. Their main object of ridicule was human vices, which people cannot get rid of to this day. And this is what makes Aesop's works so relevant. Animals and people, birds and insects act in them. Sometimes among the acting characters there are even residents of Olympus. With the help of his mind, Aesop was able to create the whole world, in which people can look at their shortcomings from the outside.

In each of the fables, Aesop shows a brief scene from life. For example, a fox looks at a bunch of grapes that she can’t reach. Or a lazy and stupid pig begins to dig up the roots of the tree whose fruits it just ate. But the sons begin to dig up the vineyard, trying to find the treasure that their father allegedly hid on its territory. Getting acquainted with Aesop's fables, the reader easily remembers simple truths that the real treasure is the ability to work, that there is nothing better or worse in the world than language, etc.

Historical information about Aesop

Unfortunately, practically no information has been preserved about who Aesop was and what his life was like. Herodotus writes that he was a slave to a master named Iadmon, who was a resident of the island of Samos. Aesop was a very obstinate worker and often made jokes that other slaves laughed at. At first, the owner was dissatisfied with all this, but then he realized that Aesop really has an extraordinary mind, and decided to let him go.

These are brief data from the biography of Aesop. Another historian, Heraclitus of Pontus, writes that Aesop was from Thrace. His first owner's name was Xanthus, and he was a philosopher. But Aesop, who was smarter than him, openly made fun of his attempts to be wise. After all, Xanth was very stupid. ABOUT personal life Almost nothing is known about Aesop.

Fable and the Athenians

Once Alexander the Great demanded that the residents of the city of Athens hand over to him the orator Demosthenes, who spoke against him in very harsh tones. The speaker told the townspeople a fable. It said that once a wolf asked the sheep to give him the dog that was guarding them. When the herd obeyed him, the predator very quickly dealt with them without the dog guarding them. The Athenians understood what the speaker wanted to say and did not hand over Demosthenes. Thus, Aesop’s fable helped the city residents to correctly assess the situation. As a result, they united in the fight against the enemy.

All of Aesop's fables contain an entertaining plot that makes the listener think. His creations are filled with morality that is understandable to everyone. After all, the events of fables are based on those events that everyone has probably experienced during their life.

Subsequently, the works of the fabulist Aesop were rewritten many times by other authors, who made their own additions to them. Ultimately, these stories were short, tongue-in-cheek, and imaginative. The expression “Aesopian language,” which is applied to everything allegorical and mocking, has become a common noun.

What did they say about the fabulist?

There were legends about who Aesop was. He was often portrayed as a short and hunchbacked old man with a lisping voice. They said that Aesop had a repulsive appearance. However, as further analysis showed, this description does not coincide with the data recorded by historians. The description of his appearance is a figment of the imagination of various writers. It was believed that since Aesop was a slave, he had to be constantly beaten and pushed - that’s why he was depicted as hunchbacked. And since the writers also wanted to show wealth inner world fabulist, they imagined his appearance as ugly and ugly. So they tried to stir up interest in the works of the fabulist, and often in their own, the authorship of which was attributed to Aesop.

And gradually a huge amount of fictitious information about who Aesop was was woven into the legend about the fabulist. Maximus Planud, a famous Greek writer, even compiled a biography of Aesop. In it, he described him as follows: “He’s a freak, not suitable for work, his head looks like a dirty cauldron, his arms are short, and there’s a hump on his back.”

Legend of Death

There is even a legend about how the fabulist died. Once the ruler Croesus sent him to Delphi, and when Aesop arrived there, he began to teach, as usual. local residents. They were so outraged by this that they decided to take revenge on him. They placed a cup from the temple in the fabulist's knapsack, and then began to convince the local priests that Aesop was a thief and worthy of execution. No matter how the fabulist tried to prove that he did not steal anything, nothing helped. They brought him to a high cliff and demanded that he throw himself off it. Aesop did not want such a stupid death, but the evil townspeople insisted. The fabulist could not convince them and fell from a height.

Whatever it is real biography Aesop and his fables have survived centuries. The total number of fables is more than 400. It is believed that the works were written in the form of poems, but they have not been preserved in this form. These creations are known in every civilized country. In the 17th century, Jean La Fontaine began processing them, and in the 19th century, fables from his works migrated into the Russian language thanks to the work of Krylov.

Aesop's work left a significant mark on literary world, and his aphorisms became well known, remaining relevant today. In ancient times they did not express any doubts about the historicity of the image, but in the 16th century this fact was first called into question.

Aesop's biography is legendary, and his origins are shrouded in mystery. According to some information, he lived around the middle of the 6th century BC. He supposedly was short stature a slave from Phrygia, had sharp facial features and a hump.

Despite such external features, Aesop had an amazing gift of words, a sharp mind and a talent for creating fables. What family did you come from? future fabulist- unknown, also no information about parents. Its homeland is sometimes called Asia Minor, which rings true due to the nature of the name.

According to one version of Aesop's life, the first owner decided to sell a talkative and useless slave of unknown nationality. It was acquired by Xanthus from Samos, who was amazed by Aesop with his witty answers. The ancient Greek philosopher never regretted the purchase, because thanks to the cunning and inventive slave, Xanthus remained in the memory of generations, because the legend associates many jokes and wisdom with him.

Slave Aesop serves his master and his guest

There is a widespread legend about how Xanthus ordered Aesop to purchase “all the best” that is in the world for the upcoming holiday. And the slave brought only tongues in various ways preparations and explained to the surprised owner that the best thing is language, because it establishes laws and contracts and expresses wise thoughts.

Xanthus thought and the next day asked Aesop to buy “the worst of everything.” And the slave brought tongues again, proving that there is nothing worse: people deceive with them, start quarrels and conflicts. Although the owner was angry at the situation, he admitted that Aesop was right.

One day, after a magnificent celebration, Xanth boastfully declared that he could drink the sea. In the morning next day Aesop's master remembered with horror his own promise. But the slave saved him from shame, advising him to set a condition: that his opponent block the rivers flowing into the sea, because Xanthus did not promise to drink them too. So the philosopher came out of predicament and escaped humiliation.

Aesop more than once asked Xanth to give him freedom, but he did not want to let go of the wise slave. Everything changed when a strange event happened - an eagle grabbed state seal and released her into the slave’s bosom, and Aesop was asked to explain the incident.

He responded to the request in a peculiar way: he said that it was not right for a slave to advise free people, but if he had been fired, he could have done it. When the people agreed, Aesop explained that the eagle is the royal bird, which means the king decided to conquer the city.

Upset residents sent former slave to the king for reconciliation. The ruler liked Aesop, he made him an adviser and made peace with the residents of the city. Legend has it that after this the sage went to the Babylonian and Egyptian kingdoms, met with sages and wrote many interesting fables.

Creation

Aesop became famous not only for his quotes and parables, he is considered the first fabulist, because it was Aesop who became the founder of this genre. A fable is a short poetic story with instructive content. The characters are various animals and plants, in whose actions human vices are visible and ridiculed. This hidden subtext of the work is called Aesopian language.

Books from Ancient Greece containing short fables, whose authorship was attributed to Aesop. Today's readers know these works in adaptations by Gulak-Artemovsky and other fabulists.

It is estimated that the Greek poet used about 80 animals and 30 gods, mythical figures and representatives of various professions in his work.

Illustration for Aesop's fable "The Fox and the Grapes"

Aesop distinguishes interesting fable about a cunning donkey: once the animal was crossing a river with a load in the form of bags of salt. But the donkey could not stay on the flimsy bridge and fell: the salt dissolved, and walking became easier. The donkey was happy and the next time he fell deliberately, but the load was wool, which swollen from the water, and the donkey drowned. The moral of this fable is that ill-conceived cunning is destructive.

Such folk wisdom, common sense and hopes for justice, expressed in a witty form, made Aesop's work immortal.

Personal life

There are several references that say that Aesop's beloved was from Thrace and was enslaved by Iadmon. According to one version of the legend, Rhodopis and Aesop had a secret love affair.

At an unknown period, the biography of Rhodopis took on the appearance of a fairy tale about. In one of the variations, which Strabo retells, while Rhodopis was bathing, an eagle stole the girl’s sandal. At this time the king was holding court on outdoors, and the eagle, soaring above his head, threw the sandal into his lap. The amazed king ordered his subjects to go in search of the girl who had lost her shoes. And, according to legend, when she was found, Rhodopis became the king’s wife.

Death

Death overtook Aesop in Delphi, the legend of this time is reconstructed according to Herodotus and, combining with later evidence.

It is believed that while in Delphi, Aesop, with his slander, aroused the wrath of several citizens who decided to punish him. To do this, the Delphians stole a golden cup from the temple utensils and put it in Aesop's travel bag while he was not looking. The sage was searched, found missing and, like a blasphemer, stoned to death.

Many years later, the fabulist’s innocence was discovered, and the descendants of his murderers paid the penalty, to receive which the grandson of that Iadmon, who was considered the first master of Aesop, arrived.

Quotes

Gratitude is a sign of nobility of soul.

It is said that Chilo asked Aesop: “What is Zeus doing?” Aesop replied: “Makes the high low and the low high.”

If a person takes on two things that are directly opposite to each other, he will certainly fail in one of them.

Each person is given his own task, and each task has its own time.

The true treasure for people is the ability to work.

Bibliography

"The Wolf and the Lamb"
"The Fox and the Grapes"
"Dragonfly and Ant"
"The Frog and the Ox"
"The Peasant and the Snake"
"The Pig and the Lioness"
"The Fisherman and the Fish"
"The Lion and the Mouse"
"The Raven and the Fox"
"The Beetle and the Ant"

Aesop

Aesop(Ancient Greek Aesop) - semi-legendary figure ancient Greek literature, fabulist who lived in the 6th century BC. uh..

Aesopian language(named after the fabulist Aesop) - secret writing in literature, an allegory that deliberately masks the thought (idea) of the author. He resorts to a system of “deceptive means”: traditional allegorical techniques (allegory, irony, periphrasis, allusion), fable “characters”, translucent contextual pseudonyms.

Biography

It is impossible to say whether Aesop was a historical figure. Scientific tradition about the life of Aesop did not exist. Herodotus (II, 134) writes that Aesop was a slave of a certain Iadmon from the island of Samos, lived during the time of the Egyptian king Amasis (570-526 BC) and was killed by the Delphians. Heraclides of Pontus writes more than a hundred years later that Aesop came from Thrace, was a contemporary of Pherecydes, and his first master was called Xanthus, but he extracts this data from the same story of Herodotus through unreliable inferences. Aristophanes ("Wasps", 1446-1448) already reports details about Aesop's death - the wandering motif of a planted cup, which served as the reason for his accusation, and the fable of the eagle and the beetle, told by him before his death. The comedian Plato (late 5th century) already mentions the posthumous reincarnations of Aesop’s soul. The comedian Alexis (late 4th century), who wrote the comedy “Aesop,” pits his hero against Solon, that is, he already interweaves the legend of Aesop into the cycle of legends about the seven wise men and King Croesus. His contemporary Lysippos also knew this version, depicting Aesop at the head of the seven wise men). Slavery at Xanthus, connection with the seven sages, death from the treachery of the Delphic priests - all these motives became links in the subsequent Aesopian legend, the core of which was formed by the end of the 4th century. BC e.

Antiquity did not doubt the historicity of Aesop, the Renaissance first questioned this question (Luther), philology of the 18th century. substantiated this doubt (Richard Bentley), 19th century philology. brought it to the limit (Otto Crusius and after him Rutherford asserted the mythical nature of Aesop with a decisiveness characteristic of the hypercriticism of their era), the 20th century began to once again lean towards the assumption of a historical prototype of the image of Aesop.

Under the name of Aesop, a collection of fables (of 426 short works) in prosaic presentation has been preserved. There is reason to believe that in the era of Aristophanes (end of the 5th century) a written collection of Aesop’s fables was known in Athens, from which children were taught at school; “You are ignorant and lazy, you haven’t even learned Aesop,” says one character in Aristophanes. These were prosaic retellings, without any artistic decoration. In fact, the so-called Aesop's collection included fables from various eras.

Heritage

Aesop's name later became a symbol. His works were passed on from mouth to mouth, and in the 3rd century BC. e. were recorded in 10 books by Demetrius of Phalerum (c. 350 - c. 283 BC). This collection was lost after the 9th century. n. e. In the era of Emperor Augustus, Phaedrus arranged these fables in Latin iambic verse; Avian, around the 4th century, arranged 42 fables in Latin elegiac distich. About 200 n. e. Babriy set them out in Greek verses in the meter of a holyamb. The works of Babrius were included by Planud (1260-1310) in his famous collection, which influenced later fabulists. "Aesop's Fables", all composed in the Middle Ages. Interest in Aesop's fables extended to his personality; in the absence of reliable information about him, they resorted to legend. The Phrygian talker, who allegorically reviled the powers that be, naturally seemed to be a grumpy and angry man, like Homer’s Thersites, and therefore the portrait of Thersites, depicted in detail by Homer, was transferred to Aesop. He was presented as hunchbacked, lame, with the face of a monkey - in a word, ugly in all respects and directly opposite to the divine beauty of Apollo; This is how he was depicted in sculpture, by the way - in that interesting statue that has survived to us. In the Middle Ages, an anecdotal biography of Aesop was composed in Byzantium, which was long accepted as a source of reliable information about him. Aesop is represented here as a slave, sold for next to nothing from hand to hand, constantly offended by fellow slaves, overseers, and masters, but able to successfully take revenge on his offenders. This biography not only did not stem from the genuine tradition of Aesop - it did not even Greek origin. Its source is the Jewish story about the wise Akyria, which belongs to the cycle of legends that surrounded the personality of King Solomon among later Jews. The story itself is known mainly from ancient Slavic adaptations. Martin Luther discovered that Aesop's book of fables is not the sole work of one author, but a collection of older and newer fables, and that the traditional image of Aesop is the fruit of a “poetic tale.” Aesop's fables have been translated (often revised) into many languages of the world, including by the famous fable writers Jean La Fontaine and Ivan Krylov.

In Russian full translation All Aesop's Fables was published in 1968.

Some fables
Camel
Lamb and Wolf
Horse and Donkey
Partridge and Hens
Reed and Olive Tree
Eagle and Fox
Eagle and Jackdaw
Eagle and Turtle
Boar and Fox
Donkey and Horse
Donkey and Fox
Donkey and Goat
Donkey, Rook and Shepherd
Frog, Rat and Crane
Fox and Ram
Fox and Donkey
Fox and Woodcutter
Fox and Stork
Fox and Dove
Rooster and Diamond
Rooster and Servant
Deer
Deer and Lion
Shepherd and Wolf
Dog and Ram
Dog and piece of meat
Dog and Wolf
Lion with other animals on the hunt
Lion and mouse
Lion and Bear
Lion and Donkey
Lion and Mosquito
Lion and Goat
Lion, Wolf and Fox
Lion, Fox and Donkey
Man and Partridge
Peacock and Jackdaw
Wolf and Crane
Wolf and Shepherds
Old Lion and Fox
Wild dog
Jackdaw and Dove
Bat
Frogs and Snake
Hare and Frogs
Hen and Swallow
Crows and other birds
Crows and Birds
Lioness and Fox
Mouse and Frog
Tortoise and Hare
Snake and Peasant
Swallow and other birds
City Mouse and Country Mouse
Ox and Lion
Dove and Crows
Goat and Shepherd
Both frogs
Both chickens
White Jackdaw
Wild Goat and grape branch
Three bulls and a lion
Chicken and Egg
Jupiter and Bees
Jupiter and Snake
Rook and Fox
Zeus and Camel
Two frogs
Two friends and a bear
Two cancers

Literature

Aesop. Commandments. Fables. Biography, 2003, 288 pp., ISBN 5-222-03491-7
When writing this article, material from Encyclopedic Dictionary Brockhaus and Efron (1890-1907).