μῦθοι Mythoi
Motif

Animal characteristics: punishment for immoderate request. Dissatisfied animal finds that when his request is granted he is worse off than before.

Mythological motifs. · Animal characteristics. · Various causes of animal characteristics. · Animal characteristics as punishment. · view the constellation · filed as A2232

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Scholars’ trail — 1reference

The index’s own references — the collections where scholars sighted this story-shape, tradition by tradition. Titles on our shelf are live links; the rest is the frontier, not yet shelved.

  • general *Dh III 176ff.
Within the index

Filed under Animal characteristics as punishment.

11 finer motifs beneath it
Camel asks for horns: punishment, short ears. (Cf. A2325.4.)Bees pray for sting: punishment, first sting suicidal. (Cf. A2346.1.)Beetle makes immoderate request; ant moderate: inverse awards. Creator hears wishes of animals. Beetle wants strong, noble appearance. Ant is modest. Beetle punished by being made to creep on ground. Ant is given own castle. (Cf. A2441.3.1.)Griffin disdains to go on ark; drowned: hence extinctAnimals ask for goddess's perfume: punishment, bad odor. (Cf. A2416.1.)Birds who aspire to blackbird's coat punished. (Cf. A2412.2.2.)Peacock given ugly feet so as to prevent too great arrogance. (Cf. A2375.2.2.)Dog's embassy to Zeus chased forth; dogs seek ambassador: why dogs sniff each other under leg. (Cf. A2471.1.)Ants ask God to give them wings: wind blows them awayRaven attempts to imitate dove: punished with awkward gaitDonkeys ask immediate reward from God: eat their own excrements
Filed beside it
Animal characteristics: punishment for impiety. (Cf. A2221, A2311.8, A2422.2, A2302.2, A2355.1.2, A2542.1.)Animal characteristics: punishment for lazinessAnimal characteristics: punishment for disobedienceAnimal characteristics caused by animal's lateness at distribution of qualities. (Cf. A2378.2.5.)Animal characteristics: punishment for planning man's downfallAnimal characteristics punishment for meddlingAnimal characteristics: punishment for greedAnimal characteristics from miscellaneous punishments

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