Section 188
The Trees and the Axe explained simply
Aesop's Fables by Aesop
Original excerpt
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A Woodman went into the forest and begged of the Trees the favour of a handle for his Axe. The principal Trees at once agreed to so modest a request, and unhesitatingly gave him a young ash sapling, out of which he fashioned the handle he desired. No sooner had he done so than...
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Public-domain original
A Woodman went into the forest and begged of the Trees the favour of a
handle for his Axe. The principal Trees at once agreed to so modest a
request, and unhesitatingly gave him a young ash sapling, out of which
he fashioned the handle he desired. No sooner had he done so than he
set to work to fell the noblest Trees in the wood. When they saw the
use to which he was putting their gift, they cried, "Alas! alas! We
are undone, but we are ourselves to blame. The little we gave has
cost us all: had we not sacrificed the rights of the ash, we might
ourselves have stood for ages."
Public-domain original text shown for study context.
What happens here
A Woodman went into the forest and begged of the Trees the favour of a handle for his Axe.
Why this scene matters
This fable matters because it turns a common human habit into a short lesson about judgment and consequences.
Characters in this scene
- The Trees: A figure in the fable whose choice helps reveal the lesson.
- The Axe: A figure in the fable whose choice helps reveal the lesson.
Simple story version
A Woodman went into the forest and begged of the Trees the favour of a handle for his Axe. The principal Trees at once agreed to so modest a request, and unhesitatingly gave him a young ash sapling, out of which he fashioned the handle he desired.