Section 84
The Walnut-Tree explained simply
Aesop's Fables by Aesop
Original excerpt
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A Walnut-tree, which grew by the roadside, bore every year a plentiful crop of nuts. Every one who ped by pelted its branches with sticks and stones, in order to bring down the fruit, and the tree suffered severely. "It is hard," it cried, "that the very persons who enjoy my fruit should thus reward me with insults...
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Public-domain original
A Walnut-tree, which grew by the roadside, bore every year a plentiful
crop of nuts. Every one who ped by pelted its branches with sticks
and stones, in order to bring down the fruit, and the tree suffered
severely. "It is hard," it cried, "that the very persons who enjoy my
fruit should thus reward me with insults and blows."
Public-domain original text shown for study context. Underlined terms can be tapped for simple reader notes.
What happens here
A walnut-tree complains that people throw stones at it because it gives fruit.
Why this scene matters
This fable shows that value can attract trouble as well as praise.
Characters in this scene
- Walnut-Tree: A central figure in the fable’s conflict and lesson.
Simple story version
The tree bears useful nuts. People stone it to get them, and the tree suffers because of its own fruitfulness.