The Farmer and His Sons
- 2 minute read
- Ages 6-10
- Aesop's Fables
An old farmer knew he was dying, and he was worried about his sons.
They were not bad men. They were lazy. The vineyard he had worked his whole life would go to them, and he knew perfectly well what would happen to it after that.
So he called them in and told them there was something they needed to know.
The treasure
"There is a treasure buried in the vineyard," he said. "I have never dug it up. It is out there somewhere in the ground between the vines. That is all I can tell you."
And he died a few days later.
The sons buried their father, and then they went out to the vineyard with spades.
They started at one end and worked across. They turned over the soil between every row, and around the root of every vine, and down as deep as a spade would go. Then they went back and did the corners and the edges and the places they had rushed.
It took them the whole of one season.
They found no treasure. There was nothing there at all.
The harvest
They were still complaining about it in the autumn when the vines came into fruit.
That year the vineyard produced more grapes than it had ever produced in their father's lifetime. Far more. The soil had been broken up and turned and aired across the whole property, every root of every vine, and the vines had answered.
The sons sold the crop and made a great deal of money.
And they looked at each other and understood what their father had done.
Moral of the story
There is no shortcut. The work you do looking for the reward usually turns out to be the reward.
Questions and answers
- Why was the farmer worried about his sons?
They were lazy, and he knew the vineyard would be neglected once he was gone.
- What did he tell them before he died?
That there was a treasure buried somewhere in the vineyard, without saying where.
- What did the sons do?
They dug over the whole vineyard, turning the soil between every row and around every vine.
- Did they find any treasure?
No. There was nothing buried there at all.
- What was the real result of their digging?
The soil was broken up and aired across the whole vineyard, and that autumn it produced the biggest crop it had ever given.
Word meanings
- vineyard
- A field where grapevines are grown.
- spade
- A tool with a flat blade for digging.
- soil
- The earth that plants grow in.
- harvest
- The gathering of crops when they are ready.
Questions about The Farmer and His Sons
What is the moral of The Farmer and His Sons?
The moral is that hard work is the treasure. The father could not persuade his sons to work, so he gave them a reason to.
Did the father lie to his sons?
In a sense, though most readers judge it as a wise deception. He told them there was treasure in the vineyard, and there was, just not the kind they expected.
Why did digging improve the harvest?
Turning soil breaks up compacted earth, lets in air and water, and helps roots take up nutrients. The science in this fable is genuinely sound.
What age suits this fable?
Ages six and above. It is gentle, nobody is harmed, and the twist is satisfying rather than uncomfortable.