Fool given the truth on his back. He tells his master what the servants have done during his absence. The servants whip him on his bare back, saying at each blow, "That is the truth." When the master returns and tells the fool to tell the truth, the latter replies, "There is nothing worse on earth than the truth."

Motif

Fool given the truth on his back. He tells his master what the servants have done during his absence. The servants whip him on his bare back, saying at each blow, "That is the truth." When the master returns and tells the fool to tell the truth, the latter replies, "There is nothing worse on earth than the truth."

The wise and the foolish. · Wise and unwise conduct. · Prudence and Discretion. · Zeal – temperate and intemperate. · view the constellation · filed as J551.2

Scholars’ trail — 1 reference (open)

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 Pauli (ed. Bolte) No. 1.

Within the index

Filed under Intemperate zeal in truth-telling.

Filed beside it

Cocks who crow about mistress's adultery killed. Discreet cock saves his life Doctor loses a horse for the sake of the truth. Overlord asks two doctors whether he is entitled to all the possessions of his retainers. One doctor unrighteously answers yes and receives a horse. The other who tells the truth receives nothing Man asked to tell truth says that his host, his hostess, and the cat have but three eyes between them. He is driven off for his truth telling Magpie tells a man that his wife has eaten an eel, which she said was eaten by the otter. The woman plucks his feathers out. When the magpie sees a bald man, she says, "You too must have tattled about the eel." Only youngest son tells king truth when asked where they got their food: banished Honest servant tells people that shop does not have many customers: dismissed

ask the rhapsode about this motif · wander