Book III: The Wolf and the Stork
The wolves are prone to play the glutton.One, at a certain feast, 'tis said,So stuff'd himself with lamb and mutton,He seem'd but little short of dead.Deep in his throat a bone stuck fast.Well for this wolf, who could not speak,That soon a stork quite near him pass'd.By signs invited, with her beakThe bone she drewWith slight ado,And for this skilful surgeryDemanded, modestly, her fee.'Your fee!' replied the wolf,In accents rather gruff;'And is it not enoughYour neck is safe from such a gulf?Go, for a wretch ingrate,Nor tempt again your fate!'
Words in this poem
- mutton n.
- A sheep. Chapman. [OE. motoun, OF. moton, molton, a sheep, wether, F. mouton, LL. multo, by transposition of l fr. L. mutilus mutilated. See Mutilate.]
- modestly adv.
- In a modest manner.
- gruff a.
- Of a rough or stern manner, voice, or countenance; sour; surly; severe; harsh. [D. grof; akin to G. grob, OHG. gerob, grob, Dan. grov, Sw. grof, perh. akin to AS. rcófan to break, Z. reavc, rupture, g- standing for the AS. prefix ge-, Goth.]
- ingrate n.
- An ungrateful person.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Book III: The Wolf and the Stork 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 III: The Wolf and the Stork, in The Fables of La Fontaine (1841), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #7241, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/la-fontaine-fables/3-9.html, id L28261.
Form and metre
Book III: The Wolf and the Stork is 18 lines in a single stanza. The metre is iambic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 92%).
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 ABABCDCDEE---FF-GG gluttonA · saidB · muttonA · deadB · fastC · speakD · pass'dC · beakD · drewE · adoE · surgery · fee · wolf · gruffF · enoughF · gulf · ingrateG · fateG
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 wolves are prone to play the glutton. | 9 | ·······/˘ |
| One, at a certain feast, 'tis said, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| So stuff'd himself with lamb and mutton, | 9 | ··˘/···/˘ |
| He seem'd but little short of dead. | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Deep in his throat a bone stuck fast. | 8 | ········ |
| Well for this wolf, who could not speak, | 8 | ········ |
| That soon a stork quite near him pass'd. | 8 | ········ |
| By signs invited, with her beak | 8 | ··˘/˘··· |
| The bone she drew | 4 | ···· |
| With slight ado, | 4 | ··˘/ |
| And for this skilful surgery | 8 | ···/˘/˘˘ |
| Demanded, modestly, her fee. | 8 | ˘/˘/˘˘·· |
| 'Your fee!' replied the wolf, | 6 | ··˘/·· |
| In accents rather gruff; | 6 | ·/˘/˘· |
| 'And is it not enough | 6 | ····˘/ |
| Your neck is safe from such a gulf? | 8 | ········ |
| Go, for a wretch ingrate, | 6 | ····/˘ |
| Nor tempt again your fate!' | 6 | ··˘/·· |
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.