Book XII: The King, the Kite, and the Falconer
The gods, for that themselves are good,The like in mortal monarchs would.The prime of royal rights is grace;To this e'en sweet revenge gives place.So thinks your highness,--while your wrathIts cradle for its coffin hath.Achilles no such conquest knew--In this a hero less than you.That name indeed belongs to none,Save those who have, beneath the sun,Their hundred generous actions done.The golden age produced such powers,But truly few this age of ours.The men who now the topmost sit,Are thank'd for crimes which they omit.For you, unharm'd by such examples,A thousand noble deeds are winning temples,Wherein Apollo, by the altar-fire,Shall strike your name upon his golden lyre.The gods await you in their azure dome;One age must serve for this your lower home.One age entire with you would Hymen dwell:O that his sweetest spellFor you a destiny may bindBy such a period scarce confined!The princess and yourself no less deserve.Her charms as witnesses shall serve;As witnesses, those talents highPour'd on you by the lavish sky,Outshining all pretence of peersThroughout your youthful years.A Bourbon seasons grace with wit:To that which gains esteem, in mixture fit,He adds a portion from, above,Wherewith to waken love.To paint your joy--my task is less sublime:I therefore turn aside to rhymeWhat did a certain bird of prey.
A kite, possessor of a nest antique,Was caught alive one day.It was the captor's freakThat this so rare a birdShould on his sovereign be conferr'd.The kite, presented by the man of chase,With due respect, before the monarch's face,If our account is true,Immediately flewAnd perch'd upon the royal nose.What! on the nose of majesty?Ay, on the consecrated nose did he!Had not the king his sceptre and his crown?Why, if he had, or had not, 'twere all one:The royal nose, as if it graced a clown,Was seized. The things by courtiers done,And said, and shriek'd, 'twere hopeless to relate.The king in silence sate:An outcry, from a sovereign king,Were quite an unbecoming thing.The bird retain'd the post where he had fasten'd;No cries nor efforts his departure hasten'd.His master call'd, as in an agony of pain,Presented lure and fist, but all in vain.It seem'd as if the cursed bird,With instinct most absurd,In spite of all the noise and blows,Would roost upon that sacred nose!The urging off of courtiers, pages, master,But roused his will to cling the faster.At last he quit, as thus the monarch spoke:'Give egress hence, imprimis, to this kite,And, next, to him who aim'd at our delight.From each his office we revoke.The one as kite we now discharge;The other, as a forester at large.As in our station it is fit,We do all punishment remit.'The court admired. The courtiers praised the deed,In which themselves did but so ill succeed.--Few kings had taken such a course.The fowler might have fared far worse;His only crime, as of his kite,Consisted in his want of light,About the danger there might beIn coming near to royalty.Forsooth, their scope had wholly beenWithin the woods. Was that a sin?--By Pilpay this remarkable affairIs placed beside the Ganges' flood.No human creature ventures, there,To shed of animals the blood:The deed not even royalty would dare.'Know we,' they say,--both lord and liege,--'This bird saw not the Trojan siege?Perhaps a hero's part he bore,And there the highest helmet wore.What once he was, he yet may be.Taught by Pythagoras are we,That we our forms with animals exchange;We're kites or pigeons for a while,Then biped plodders on the soil;And thenAs volatile, againThe liquid air we range.--'Now since two versions of this tale exist,I'll give the other if you list.A certain falconer had caughtA kite, and for his sovereign thoughtThe bird a present rich and rare.It may be once a centurySuch game is taken from the air;For 'tis the pink of falconry.The captor pierced the courtier crowd,With zeal and sweat, as if for life;Of such a princely present proud,His hopes of fortune sprang full rife;When, slap, the savage made him feelHis talons, newly arm'd with steel,By perching on his nasal member,As if it had been senseless timber.Outshriek'd the wight; but peals of laughter,Which threaten'd ceiling, roof, and rafter,From courtier, page, and monarch broke:Who had not laugh'd at such a joke?From me, so prone am I to such a sin,An empire had not held me in.I dare not say, that, had the pope been there,He would have join'd the laugh sonorous;But sad the king, I hold, who should not dareTo lead, for such a cause, in such a chorus.The gods are laughers. Spite of ebon brows,Jove joints the laugh which he allows.As history saith, the thunderer's laugh went upWhen limping Vulcan served the nectar cup.Whether or not immortals here are wise,Good sense, I think, in my digression lies.For, since the moral's what we have in view,What could the falconer's fate have taught us new?Who does not notice, in the course of things,More foolish falconers than indulgent kings?
Words in this poem 37
- highness n.
- The state of being high; elevation; loftiness. [AS. heáhnes.]
- generous a.
- Of honorable birth or origin; highborn. [F. généreux, fr. L. generous of noble birth, noble, excellent, magnanimous, fr. genus birth, race: cf. It. generoso. See 2d Gender.]
- shall v. i.
- To owe; to be under obligation for. [OE. shal, schal, imp. sholde, scholde, AS. scal, sceal, I am obliged, imp. scolde, sceolde, inf. sculan; akin to OS. skulan, pres. skal, imp. skolda, D. zullen,]
- await v. t.
- To watch for; to look out for. [OF. awaitier, agaitier; (L. ad) + waitier, gaitier to watch, F. guetter. See Wait.]
- hymen n.
- A fold of muscous membrane often found at the orifice of the vagina; the vaginal membrane.
- dwell v. i.
- To delay; to linger. [OE. dwellen, dwelien, to err, linger, AS. dwellan to deceive, hinder, delay, dwelian to err; akin to Icel. dvelja to delay, tarry, Sw. dväljas to dwell, Dan. dv]
- scarce a.
- Not plentiful or abundant; in small quantity in proportion to the demand; not easily to be procured; rare; uncommon. [OE. scars, OF. escars, eschars, LL. scarpsus, for L. excerptus, p. p. of excerpere to pick out, and hence to contract, to shorten; ex (see Ex-) + carpere. See C]
- princess n.
- A female prince; a woman having sovereign power, or the rank of a prince. [F. princesse. See Prince, and cf. Princesse.]
- pretence n.
- The act of laying claim; the claim laid; assumption; pretension. [LL. praetensus, for L. praetentus, p. p. of praetendere. See Pretend, and cf. Tension.]
- bourbon n.
- A member of a family which has occupied several European thrones, and whose descendants still claim the throne of France. [From the castle and seigniory of Bourbon in central France.]
- wherewith adv.
- With which; -- used relatively.
- waken v. i.
- To wake; to cease to sleep; to be awakened. [OE. waknen, AS. wæcnan; akin to Goth. gawaknan. See Wake, v. i.]
- sceptre n.
- A staff or baton borne by a sovereign, as a ceremonial badge or emblem of authority; a royal mace. [F. sceptre, L. sceptrum, from Gr. shaft. See Shaft, and cf. Scape a stem, shaft.]
- graced a.
- Endowed with grace; beautiful; full of graces; honorable.
- sate v. t.
- To satisfy the desire or appetite of; to satiate; to glut; to surfeit. [Probably shortened fr. satiate: cf. L. satus full. See Satiate.]
- departure n.
- Division; separation; putting away. [From Depart.]
- cursed a.
- Deserving a curse; execrable; hateful; detestable; abominable.
- spoke n.
- The radius or ray of a wheel; one of the small bars which are inserted in the hub, or nave, and which serve to support the rim or felly. [OE. spoke, spake, AS, spaca; akin to D. speek, LG. speke, OHG. speihha, G. speiche. sq. root170. Cf. Spike a nail.]
- imprimis adv.
- In the first place; first in order. [L., for in primis among the first, chiefly; in in + primus first.]
- forester n.
- One who has charge of the growing timber on an estate; an officer appointed to watch a forest and preserve the game. [F. forestier, LL. forestarius.]
- remit v. t.
- To send back; to give up; to surrender; to resign. [L. remittere, remissum, to send back, to slacken, relax; pref. re- re- + mittere to send. See Mission, and cf. Remise, Remiss.]
- admired a.
- Regarded with wonder and delight; highly prized; as, an admired poem.
- fowler n.
- A sportsman who pursues wild fowl, or takes or kills for food.
- forsooth v. t.
- To address respectfully with the term forsooth.
- liege a.
- Sovereign; independent; having authority or right to allegiance; as, a liege lord. [OE. lige, lege, F. lige, LL. ligius, legius, liege, unlimited, complete, prob. of German origin; cf. G. ledig free from bonds and obstacles, MHG. ledec, ledic, ]
- biped n.
- A two-footed animal, as man. [L. bipes; bis twice + pes, pedis, bipède.]
- falconer n.
- A person who breeds or trains hawks for taking birds or game; one who follows the sport of fowling with hawks. Johnson. [OE. fauconer, OF. falconier, fauconier, F. fauconnier. See Falcon.]
- captor n.
- One who captures any person or thing, as a prisoner or a prize. [L., a cather (of animals), fr. caper to take.]
- courtier n.
- One who is in attendance at the court of a prince; one who has an appointment at court. [From Court.]
- rife a.
- Prevailing; prevalent; abounding. [AS. rif abundant, or Icel. rifr munificent; akin to OD. riff, rijve, abundant.]
- wight n.
- A whit; a bit; a jot. [OE. wight, wiht, a wight, a whit, AS. wiht, wuht, a creature, a thing; skin to D. wicht a child, OS. & OHG. wiht a creature, thing, G. wicht a creature, Icel. v]
- rafter n.
- Originally, any rough and somewhat heavy piece of timber. Now, commonly, one of the timbers of a roof which are put on sloping, according to the inclination of the roof. See Illust. of Queen-post. [AS. ræfter; akin to E. raft, n. See Raft.]
- broke v. i.
- To transact business for another. Brome. [See Broker, and cf. Brook.]
- ebon a.
- Consisting of ebony.
- jove n.
- The chief divinity of the ancient Romans; Jupiter. [L. Jupiter, gen. Jovis, OL. Jovis, nom. & gen. for Djovis; akin to E. Tuesday. See Tuesday, and cf. Jupiter.]
- saith
- 3d pers. sing. pres. of Say.
- went n.
- Course; way; path; journey; direction.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Book XII: The King, the Kite, and the Falconer is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Fables of La Fontaine, Project Gutenberg ebook #7241, the Elizur Wright translation; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Jean de La Fontaine, Book XII: The King, the Kite, and the Falconer, in The Fables of La Fontaine (1841), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #7241, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/la-fontaine-fables/12-12.html, id L28438.
Form and metre
Book XII: The King, the Kite, and the Falconer is 139 lines in 2 stanzas. The metre is iambic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 90%).
See other poems in iambic tetrameter.
Measured by Laurel's pipeline, not copied from a handbook: how stress and metre are counted, how rhyme is lettered, how a drifted rhyme is found. Where the dictionary cannot confirm a rhyme the letter is withheld, not guessed.
Rhyme words, stanza by stanza
The word that ends each line, lettered by the rhyme it makes; a dash is a line whose rhyme the dictionary could not confirm.
- 1 AABBCCDDEEEFFGG----HHIIJJKKLLMMNNOOPP- goodA · wouldA · graceB · placeB · wrathC · hathC · knewD · youD · noneE · sunE · doneE · powersF · oursF · sitG · omitG · examples · temples · fire · lyre · domeH · homeH · dwellI · spellI · bindJ · confinedJ · deserveK · serveK · highL · skyL · peersM · yearsM · witN · fitN · aboveO · loveO · sublimeP · rhymeP · prey
- 2 A-ABBCCDD---EFEFGGHH--IIJJKKLLMNNMOOPPQQ--RR--SSTUTUTVVWWXX---YY-ZZ--a-a-bcbcdd--eeffggh-h-iijjkkllmm antiqueA · day · freakA · birdB · conferr'dB · chaseC · faceC · trueD · flewD · nose · majesty · he · crownE · oneF · clownE · doneF · relateG · sateG · kingH · thingH · fasten'd · hasten'd · painI · vainI · birdJ · absurdJ · blowsK · noseK · masterL · fasterL · spokeM · kiteN · delightN · revokeM · dischargeO · largeO · fitP · remitP · deedQ · succeedQ · course · worse · kiteR · lightR · be · royalty · beenS · sinS · affairT · floodU · thereT · bloodU · dareT · liegeV · siegeV · boreW · woreW · beX · weX · exchange · while · soil · thenY · againY · range · existZ · listZ · caught · thought · rarea · century · aira · falconry · crowdb · lifec · proudb · rifec · feeld · steeld · member · timber · laughtere · raftere · brokef · jokef · sing · ing · thereh · sonorous · dareh · chorus · browsi · allowsi · upj · cupj · wisek · liesk · viewl · newl · thingsm · kingsm
Scansion, line by line
Each line with its syllable count and the stresses the words themselves fix: / stressed, ˘ unstressed, · a syllable the word leaves free and the metre decides. Read against iambic tetrameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| The gods, for that themselves are good, | 8 | ····˘/·· |
| The like in mortal monarchs would. | 8 | ···/˘/·· |
| The prime of royal rights is grace; | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| To this e'en sweet revenge gives place. | 8 | ····˘/·· |
| So thinks your highness,--while your wrath | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Its cradle for its coffin hath. | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| Achilles no such conquest knew-- | 8 | ˘/˘··/˘· |
| In this a hero less than you. | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| That name indeed belongs to none, | 8 | ··˘/˘/·· |
| Save those who have, beneath the sun, | 8 | ········ |
| Their hundred generous actions done. | 8 | ·/˘/˘/˘· |
| The golden age produced such powers, | 9 | ·/˘·˘/·/˘ |
| But truly few this age of ours. | 9 | ·/˘····/˘ |
| The men who now the topmost sit, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Are thank'd for crimes which they omit. | 8 | ······˘/ |
| For you, unharm'd by such examples, | 9 | ··˘/··˘/˘ |
| A thousand noble deeds are winning temples, | 11 | ·/˘/˘··/˘/˘ |
| Wherein Apollo, by the altar-fire, | 10 | ··˘/˘··/˘/ |
| Shall strike your name upon his golden lyre. | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| The gods await you in their azure dome; | 10 | ··˘/···/˘· |
| One age must serve for this your lower home. | 9 | ·······/· |
| One age entire with you would Hymen dwell: | 10 | ··˘/···/˘· |
| O that his sweetest spell | 6 | ···/˘· |
| For you a destiny may bind | 8 | ···/˘˘·· |
| By such a period scarce confined! | 8 | ···/˘·˘/ |
| The princess and yourself no less deserve. | 10 | ·/˘·˘/··˘/ |
| Her charms as witnesses shall serve; | 8 | ···/˘˘·· |
| As witnesses, those talents high | 8 | ·/˘˘·/˘· |
| Pour'd on you by the lavish sky, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Outshining all pretence of peers | 8 | /·˘····· |
| Throughout your youthful years. | 6 | ···/˘· |
| A Bourbon seasons grace with wit: | 8 | ·/˘/˘··· |
| To that which gains esteem, in mixture fit, | 10 | ····˘/·/˘· |
| He adds a portion from, above, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Wherewith to waken love. | 6 | ˘/·/˘· |
| To paint your joy--my task is less sublime: | 10 | ········˘/ |
| I therefore turn aside to rhyme | 8 | ····˘/·· |
| What did a certain bird of prey. | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| A kite, possessor of a nest antique, | 10 | ··˘/˘···˘/ |
| Was caught alive one day. | 6 | ··˘/·· |
| It was the captor's freak | 6 | ···/˘· |
| That this so rare a bird | 6 | ······ |
| Should on his sovereign be conferr'd. | 8 | ···/˘·˘/ |
| The kite, presented by the man of chase, | 10 | ··˘/˘····· |
| With due respect, before the monarch's face, | 10 | ··˘/···/·· |
| If our account is true, | 7 | ·/˘˘/·· |
| Immediately flew | 6 | ˘/˘˘˘· |
| And perch'd upon the royal nose. | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| What! on the nose of majesty? | 8 | ·····/˘˘ |
| Ay, on the consecrated nose did he! | 10 | ···/˘·˘··· |
| Had not the king his sceptre and his crown? | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| Why, if he had, or had not, 'twere all one: | 10 | ·········· |
| The royal nose, as if it graced a clown, | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| Was seized. The things by courtiers done, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| And said, and shriek'd, 'twere hopeless to relate. | 10 | ·····/˘·˘/ |
| The king in silence sate: | 6 | ···/˘· |
| An outcry, from a sovereign king, | 8 | ·/···/˘· |
| Were quite an unbecoming thing. | 8 | ····˘/˘· |
| The bird retain'd the post where he had fasten'd; | 11 | ··˘/·····/˘ |
| No cries nor efforts his departure hasten'd. | 11 | ···/˘·˘/˘/˘ |
| His master call'd, as in an agony of pain, | 11 | ·/˘····/˘·· |
| Presented lure and fist, but all in vain. | 10 | ˘/˘······· |
| It seem'd as if the cursed bird, | 8 | ······˘· |
| With instinct most absurd, | 6 | ·/˘·˘/ |
| In spite of all the noise and blows, | 8 | ········ |
| Would roost upon that sacred nose! | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| The urging off of courtiers, pages, master, | 11 | ·/˘··/˘/˘/˘ |
| But roused his will to cling the faster. | 9 | ·······/˘ |
| At last he quit, as thus the monarch spoke: | 10 | ·······/·· |
| 'Give egress hence, imprimis, to this kite, | 10 | ·˘/·˘/˘··· |
| And, next, to him who aim'd at our delight. | 10 | ·······/˘/ |
| From each his office we revoke. | 8 | ···/˘·˘/ |
| The one as kite we now discharge; | 8 | ······˘/ |
| The other, as a forester at large. | 9 | ·/˘··/˘·· |
| As in our station it is fit, | 8 | ··//˘··· |
| We do all punishment remit.' | 8 | ···/˘˘˘/ |
| The court admired. The courtiers praised the deed, | 10 | ··˘/·/˘··· |
| In which themselves did but so ill succeed.-- | 10 | ··˘/····˘/ |
| Few kings had taken such a course. | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| The fowler might have fared far worse; | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| His only crime, as of his kite, | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| Consisted in his want of light, | 8 | ˘/˘····· |
| About the danger there might be | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| In coming near to royalty. | 8 | ·/˘··/˘˘ |
| Forsooth, their scope had wholly been | 8 | ˘/···/˘· |
| Within the woods. Was that a sin?-- | 8 | ········ |
| By Pilpay this remarkable affair | 9 | ····˘/˘˘/ |
| Is placed beside the Ganges' flood. | 8 | ··˘/·/˘· |
| No human creature ventures, there, | 8 | ·/˘/˘/˘· |
| To shed of animals the blood: | 8 | ···/˘˘·· |
| The deed not even royalty would dare. | 8 | ···//˘·· |
| 'Know we,' they say,--both lord and liege,-- | 8 | ········ |
| 'This bird saw not the Trojan siege? | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Perhaps a hero's part he bore, | 8 | ˘/·/˘··· |
| And there the highest helmet wore. | 8 | ···/˘/˘· |
| What once he was, he yet may be. | 8 | ········ |
| Taught by Pythagoras are we, | 8 | ········ |
| That we our forms with animals exchange; | 9 | ··/··/˘˘/ |
| We're kites or pigeons for a while, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Then biped plodders on the soil; | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| And then | 2 | ·· |
| As volatile, again | 6 | ·/˘˘˘/ |
| The liquid air we range.--' | 6 | ·/˘··· |
| Now since two versions of this tale exist, | 10 | ···/˘···˘/ |
| I'll give the other if you list. | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| A certain falconer had caught | 8 | ·/˘/˘˘·· |
| A kite, and for his sovereign thought | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| The bird a present rich and rare. | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| It may be once a century | 8 | ·····/˘˘ |
| Such game is taken from the air; | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| For 'tis the pink of falconry. | 8 | ·····/˘˘ |
| The captor pierced the courtier crowd, | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| With zeal and sweat, as if for life; | 8 | ········ |
| Of such a princely present proud, | 8 | ···/˘/˘· |
| His hopes of fortune sprang full rife; | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| When, slap, the savage made him feel | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| His talons, newly arm'd with steel, | 8 | ·/˘/˘··· |
| By perching on his nasal member, | 9 | ·/˘··/˘/˘ |
| As if it had been senseless timber. | 9 | ·····/˘/˘ |
| Outshriek'd the wight; but peals of laughter, | 9 | ·······/˘ |
| Which threaten'd ceiling, roof, and rafter, | 9 | ·/˘/˘··/˘ |
| From courtier, page, and monarch broke: | 8 | ·/˘··/·· |
| Who had not laugh'd at such a joke? | 8 | ········ |
| From me, so prone am I to such a sin, | 10 | ·········· |
| An empire had not held me in. | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| I dare not say, that, had the pope been there, | 10 | ·········· |
| He would have join'd the laugh sonorous; | 9 | ······/˘˘ |
| But sad the king, I hold, who should not dare | 10 | ·········· |
| To lead, for such a cause, in such a chorus. | 11 | ·········/˘ |
| The gods are laughers. Spite of ebon brows, | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| Jove joints the laugh which he allows. | 8 | ······˘/ |
| As history saith, the thunderer's laugh went up | 11 | ·/˘········ |
| When limping Vulcan served the nectar cup. | 10 | ·/˘/˘··/˘· |
| Whether or not immortals here are wise, | 10 | ····˘/˘··· |
| Good sense, I think, in my digression lies. | 10 | ······˘/˘· |
| For, since the moral's what we have in view, | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| What could the falconer's fate have taught us new? | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| Who does not notice, in the course of things, | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| More foolish falconers than indulgent kings? | 10 | ·/˘/˘·˘/˘· |
The reader shows the same poem with its rhymes coloured and a stress row above each line, the notes beside their stanzas, and any word's definition on a tap; the analysis page takes the whole book apart. How every part of this site was made.