The Wolf and the Lamb
- 2 minute read
- Ages 7-11
- Aesop's Fables
A wolf came down to a stream and found a lamb drinking further along it.
He had already decided what was going to happen. But he wanted a reason first, so he walked up the bank looking stern.
The accusations
"You are muddying my water," he said.
The lamb looked at the stream, and at the wolf, and answered carefully.
"I cannot be. The water flows from you to me. Anything I stir up goes away downstream, not up to you."
The wolf accepted this without any sign of being troubled by it.
"Last year," he said, "you insulted me."
"Last year I had not been born."
"Then it was your brother."
"I have no brother."
"Your father, then. Or your mother. Or somebody in your flock. It hardly matters which."
The lamb said nothing.
"One of you did it," said the wolf, coming closer, "and I am not going to stand here arguing about which one while my dinner gets cold."
And that was the end of the conversation.
Moral of the story
Someone who has already decided to harm you does not need a good reason, only any reason. Winning the argument will not save you.
Questions and answers
- What was the wolf's first accusation?
That the lamb was muddying his drinking water.
- How did the lamb prove this was impossible?
The stream flowed from the wolf towards the lamb, so anything the lamb stirred up would go downstream, away from the wolf.
- What did the wolf accuse the lamb of next?
Insulting him the year before, then when that failed, blamed the lamb's brother, parents and finally the whole flock.
- Why did the wolf keep changing his accusation?
He had already decided to eat the lamb and only wanted some excuse. The truth of each accusation did not matter to him.
- What is the lesson about arguing?
That being right does not protect you from someone who is not arguing in good faith. The lamb answered every point correctly and it changed nothing.
Word meanings
- accusation
- A claim that someone has done something wrong.
- stern
- Serious and severe in manner.
- insulted
- Said something rude or offensive to someone.
- flock
- A group of sheep kept together.
Questions about The Wolf and the Lamb
What is the moral of The Wolf and the Lamb?
The moral is that a tyrant will always find an excuse. Where someone has power and bad intentions, reason and evidence make no difference.
Why is this considered one of Aesop's darkest fables?
Because the innocent character does everything right and it does not help. Most fables reward good judgement; this one deliberately does not.
Is the ending described?
No. The fable stops at the wolf's last line, which is why it works for children while still landing hard.
What discussion does it open?
It is a good way into talking about unfair blame, and about situations where the right response is to leave rather than to argue.