The wise and the foolish

3,525 motifs · page 6 of 18

• Ambitious branch chosen king of trees. Vine and fig tree have refused. J956
• Presumptuous man before the works of Michelangelo says: "I too am a master". J957
• Mole pretends that he sees, smells, and hears. His mother tells him to claim no more senses than he has. J958
• Flies try to drink water from elephant's ears. He kills them. J971
• One cock takes glory of another's valor. Victor in cock fight crows over his victory. He is taken off by eagle. A second cock then comes out from hiding and struts about among the hens. J972
• Ass in the potter's shop. (Bull in china shop.) Only breaks the pots. J973
• Kid perched on house jeers at wolf. (Cf. J978.) J974
• Hare demands equal rights for all animals. Reprimanded for presumption. J975
• Day after Feast Day disputes importance with Feast Day. Former reprimanded. J976
• After one day of schooling children are ordered by their father to cease associating with the unlearned. J977
• Boaster of victory over a weaker person reprimanded. J978
• Presumptuous smith chants the Divine Comedy. Dante throws his tools in the street. Blacksmith: "You ruin my work!" Dante: "You ruin mine!" J981
• Dante beats a mule driver who chants the Divine Comedy. J981.1
• Presumptuous officials disregarded by council. J982
• Value of industry. J1010
• Lazy woman resumes her work. She sees how a little bird by persistence pecks a hole in a stone. J1011
• Strength in unity. J1020
• The quarreling sons and the bundle of twigs. Peasant puts twigs together and cannot break them. Separately they are easily broken. His sons apply the lesson. J1021
• Sons united make living; separated fail. J1021.1
• Preacher teaches beaten Genoese the strength of unity. They are like donkeys – when one is beaten the rest scatter. The enemy are like pigs – stick together in trouble. J1021.2
• Fight of lions and bulls. Lion succeeds only when bulls separate. J1022
• Dog leader fears defeat because his forces are of different breeds. Wolves are all of one kind. J1023
• Quails caught in net rise up in a body with net and escape. As soon as they quarrel they are caught. J1024
• Captured elephants pull all at once and escape from net. J1024.1
• United cocks defeat partridge. When they quarrel they are defeated. J1025
• Cranes fighting as allies defeat all enemies. If they quarrel they are doomed. J1025.1
• Cats unite in battle against a wolf. They destroy wolf. J1025.2
• Self-dependence. J1030
• Grain will be cut when farmer attends to it himself. Lark leaves her young in the cornfield. They hear farmer tell sons to go to neighbors for help in harvesting. Lark tells young not to worry. Same when he sends for relatives. Farmer decides to harvest it himself. Larks move, for they now know that it will be done. J1031
• Stag found by master when overlooked by servants. Hides under hay and escapes until master himself comes. J1032
• Gardener who plants vegetable tends it best. J1033
• Gods help those who help themselves. Ox driver must put his shoulder to the wheel before Hercules will help him. J1034
• Decisiveness of conduct. J1040
• Impossibility of pleasing everyone. One must act therefore without awaiting everyone's approval. J1041
• Weather to please one only. Attempt to please everyone with weather unavailing. Weather given therefore without regard to men's desires. J1041.1
• Miller, his son, and the ass: trying to please everyone. Miller blamed when he follows his son on foot; when he takes the son's place on the ass; when he takes the son behind him; and when he puts the son in front of him. J1041.2
• Attention to warnings. J1050
• Death's three messengers. Warns man by loss of appetite, loss of desire for drink, and sickness. Man does not recognize the messengers. J1051
• Cranes disregard warnings and are killed. J1052
• Snake disregards warnings to improve his manners: eaten by crab. J1053
• Man disregards mother's warning and is punished. J1054
• Man disregards priest's warning and is punished. J1055
• Miscellaneous aspects of wisdom. J1060
• Value depends upon real use. J1061
• The cock and the pearl: prefers a single corn to a peck of pearls. J1061.1
• Baldheaded man finds the comb: it is useless. J1061.2
• Foolish dog finds treasure and dies rather than leave it. J1061.3
• Miser's treasure stolen. Advised to imagine that his treasure is still there: he will be as well off as before. J1061.4
• Cure yourself before doctoring others. J1062
• Frog as beauty doctor unable to cure his own ugliness. J1062.1
• Doctor unable to cure himself scorned. J1062.2
• Bald man tries to sell hair restorer. Scorned. J1062.2.1
• Pot calls kettle black. J1063
• Mother crab blames her children for not walking straight. J1063.1
• Drunk man makes sport of another man for being drunk. J1063.2
• Futility of trying to teach the stupid. J1064
• Raven killed by apes who will not receive his teaching that a shining stone is not fire. J1064.1
• Results of labor lost in a moment of procrastination. J1071
• After laboring to make a brazen head, artist loses labor in moment of procrastination. J1071.1
• Man to be judged by his own qualities, not his clothes. J1072
• Guests strike man who tries to interfere in their quarrel. It is their host in old clothes. Guests are humiliated but forgiven. J1072.1
• Rich Brahmin wearing poor clothing is treated as a beggar. J1072.2
• Never use your entire resources. J1073
• Man who never does any piece of work so well that he cannot improve it. J1073.1
• Value of silence. J1074
• Parson's apology for not answering challenge: I have never regretted silence but have often regretted speech. J1074.1
• Philosopher does not join in with gossipers. He is silent because he fears that some day he may talk too much and not be able to keep silent. J1074.1.1
• Man does not court ugly woman: she might say yes. Therefore he keeps silent. J1074.2
• Time renders all things commonplace. J1075
• Woman tests enduring power of gossip by having a servant ride through streets on a flayed ass. By the third day he has ceased to attract attention. She concludes that it will be the same way in connection with her intended marriage. J1075.1
• Fox is terrified on first seeing lion. The third time she meets him she has no fear. J1075.2
• Futility of distant travel. J1076
• Man desirous of traveling sent six miles to deliver a letter. Told that he has now seen the world, for he will never see more than valleys, hills, fields, meadows, water, streets, cities, and villages. J1076.1
• Preciousness of untroubled sleep. J1081
• King buys spendthrift's bed. It must have been an extraordinary bed to permit a man with so many debts to sleep on it. J1081.1
• Futility of trying to hide an obvious deed. J1082
• Horn will tell the tale. Thus answers goat to herdsman who begs her not to tell master that he has broken off her horn. J1082.1
• Money does not always bring happiness. J1085
• The happy friar becomes unhappier as he receives ever more and more money. Gets rid of money and is happy as before. J1085.1
• [First Edition (Additions and Corrections): J1085.1[b]. Priest with crucifix and club. Orders church thieves to replace stolen goods. When crucifix does not bring obedience he forces them with club.] J1085.1[b][1st ed.]
• Possession of gold turns humble servant into arrogant one. J1085.2
• King sees poor man far happier than himself. J1085.3
• Poor man returns to the emperor all save enough for comfort: wealth would take happiness from his simple life. J1085.4
• Ignoring the unpleasant. Wise man refuses to react to unpleasantness. "I don't hear the unpleasant." J1086
• Futility of expecting stranger to have one's interest at heart. J1087
• When the sweet fails try the bitter. Man pleads with thief who is stealing his figs. When pleading fails he brings him down from tree with stones. (Cf. J1581.2, T251.5.) J1088
• Cleverness. J1100
• Clever persons. J1110
• Clever girl. J1111
• Princess skillful in argument. J1111.1
• Princess skillful in pleading. J1111.1.1
• Illegitimate daughter of trickster inherits father's ability to dupe others. J1111.2
• Clever daughter-in-law. J1111.3
• Clever peasant daughter. J1111.4
• Clever minister's daughter. J1111.5
• Clever maidservant. J1111.6
• Clever slave girl. J1111.6.1
• Clever wife. J1112
• Wife reforms wayward husband. Makes gift to husband's mistress so that she may receive him fittingly. Husband is shamed into reforming. J1112.1
• Disguised real wife orders motley wear for her husband when he goes to fetch new bride-to-be: prospective father-in-law takes him for a fool and real wife reveals herself to husband. J1112.1.1
• Wife dismisses maid who is husband's mistress and tells him she has fled. Husband understands and reforms. J1112.2
• Clever wife advises husband how to succeed on adventures. J1112.3
• Wives prevent war by placing themselves and their children between two armies. J1112.4
• Clever wife obtains secrets from husband by questioning him. J1112.5
• Clever boy. J1113
• Clever servant. (Cf. J1111.6, J1341, J1561.4, N25, P360, W111.2.) J1114
• Clever slave. (Cf. J1111.6.1.) J1114.0.1
• Man deceived by his hireling. J1114.1
• Clever professions. J1115
• Clever gambler. J1115.1
• Clever physician. J1115.2
• Physician decides that there is no need of purging one who drinks so many liquids. J1115.2.1
• Physician removes pea from patient's ear. Knocks him down and pea rolls out. J1115.2.2
• Clever barber. J1115.3
• Clever tailor. J1115.4
• Clever minstrel. J1115.5
• Clever minstrel gets a new robe. Has tattered robe mended with scarlet. Ridiculed "I wish the rest of the robe were of the same material". Is given one. J1115.5.1
• Clever peasant. J1115.6
• Clever merchant. J1115.7
• Clever merchant profits by being robbed. Monkeys steal his caps. Traps monkeys and sells them. J1115.7.1
• Clever prostitute. Gives advice on many questions. J1115.8
• Clever shepherd. J1115.9
• Clever official. J1115.10
• Clever governor. J1115.10.1
• Clever minister. J1115.10.2
• Foolish person becomes clever. J1116
• Clever madman. J1116.1
• Animal as trickster. J1117
• Jackal as trickster. J1117.1
• Coyote as trickster. J1117.2
• Clever bird. J1118
• Clever parrot. J1118.1
• Clever younger generation. J1122
• Young crow's alertness. Crow advises young ones to fly away if they see man stooping for a stone to throw. Young crows: "What if he already has stone in hand?" J1122.1
• Clever court jester. J1124
• Cleverness in law court – general. J1130
• Maxims for use of law court. J1131
• Cleverness in detection of truth. J1140
• Solomon able to detect truth without evidence of witnesses. J1140.1
• Confession obtained by a ruse. J1141
• Guilty person deceived into gesture (act) which admits guilt. J1141.1
• Largest part of a prize to go to the guilty man. In order to obtain the prize, he confesses the earlier crime. J1141.1.1
• "Thief has grease from stolen fowl on him": thief begins to feel his beard and is detected. J1141.1.2
• Creditor: "The destroyed bond was a cubit in size." Debtor: "That is a lie; it was only a span." J1141.1.3
• Stone as witness. Farmer will not pay servant wages due. Closing his bargain with the servant he had said: "May this stone be witness." Judge orders stone brought to court. The farmer: "Oh, but the stone is too big (or very far away)". J1141.1.3.1
• "Guilty man's stick will grow during night." Guilty man chops end off stick. J1141.1.4
• "Thief has the feathers sticking on his head": guilty woman immediately passes her hand over her head. J1141.1.5
• To decide which is master and which servant they are to put heads through window and servant's head is to be cut off. Servant draws back. J1141.1.6
• Which is man and which demon in man's shape? Decision to go to whichever can go through end of reed. J1141.1.7
• Accused woman to go three times around building naked: guilty one begins to strip off her clothes. J1141.1.8
• Thief persuaded detective can read thoughts: confesses. (Cf. N275.) J1141.1.9
• Queen flogs suspects telling them to produce stolen gem: thief promises to do so. J1141.1.10
• Confession of debt secured by having defendant dispute as to whether cat was present when debt was made. J1141.1.11
• B warns A not to tie his horse near B's. Horses fight and A's is killed. In court B plays dumb. A says B could talk the day before, and repeats conversation. Judge blames A for not taking advice. J1141.1.12
• Magician assigned three places at a table. He confesses to carrying two persons in his body. J1141.2
• Cheaters examined apart; first made to repeat paternoster. Others think that he has confessed and truth is discovered. J1141.3
• Confession induced by bringing an unjust action against accused. False message to thief's wife to send the stolen jewel case as bribe to the judge. She does. J1141.4
• Detection of theft by finding bag-repairer. Two men are in a lawsuit and before witnesses seal the documents in a bag to await arrival of the king. One of the men cuts the bag open, changes the documents, and has a repairer sew it up again. On the king's arrival the change is discovered. By having a fine carpet repaired the expert repairer is discovered. Confession follows. J1141.5
• Thief's money scales borrowed. A man buries gold and a thief steals it. The owner detects the criminal. He takes some money to the thief and borrows money scales "to weigh so as to bury with the other". The thief decides that he is detected and hastens to return the stolen money. J1141.6
• Thief suspected of crawling through hole must take off clothes. He is full of scratches and confesses. J1141.7
• Silence points to guilt. Important man quarrels with commoner. Asks bystanders: "Who is right?" Silence. Newcomer states that the important man is wrong. "Had he been right the others would have said so." J1141.8
• The guilty protests his innocence. Animals put to graze in man's garden. Owner greets everyone with: "I know about you!" No one pays any attention to him except the guilty one who says: "I did not do it." Confesses. (Cf. N275.) J1141.9
• Confession obtained by making thief fear for his life. (Told that crossbow would shoot guilty person as he passed before it.) J1141.10
• Detection through ruse. Husbands ask suspected priest to talk to wives on tithing, and thus obtain sufficient evidence to convict him. J1141.11
• Guilty man freed of murder charge is tricked into making a false accusation for which he is sentenced. J1141.12
• Witness always to answer "No." Thus gets self condemned. J1141.13
• Minister threatens divine punishment to thief in congregation. The thief confesses. J1141.14
• The thief is tricked into revealing himself in church. J1141.15
• The thief is tricked into betraying himself in supposed ordeal. J1141.16
• Pseudo-scientific methods of detecting. J1142
• Test of mother by weighing milk. The one with the heavier milk the mother of the boy; the other of the girl. J1142.1
• Love detected by quickening pulse. A woman's adulterous love detected through her pulse quickening at mention of her lover. J1142.2
• Guilt detected by quickening heartbeat. J1142.2.1
• Adultery detected by spit marks on the wall. Too high to have been made by husband. J1142.3
• Thief's corpse carried through street to see who will weep for him. J1142.4
• Mother's weeping for thief made to seem natural. J1142.4.1
• Clever son falls from tree, so mother's tears over dead body of father being carried through street will seem natural. J1142.4.1.1
• Woman breaks milk jars so that weeping for thief will seem natural. J1142.4.1.2
• Thief detected by building straw fire so that smoke escapes through thief's entrance. The secret hole into the building is thus discovered and the thief caught. J1143
• Eaters of stolen food detected. J1144
• Eaters of stolen food detected by the giving of an emetic. J1144.1
• Animal thief of eggs detected when he comes to a spring to drink. All animals must tell why they are thirsty. J1144.2
• Detection through aid of animal. J1145
• Murderer detected by actions of murdered man's dog. Attacks murderer whenever possible. J1145.1
• Detection by strewing ashes (sand). Trespasser (lover, mistress, ghost, fairy, etc.) leaves footprints in the ashes. J1146
• Detection by pitch-trap. Pitch is spread so that footprints are left in it, or that shoe is left behind as clue. J1146.1
• Detection through feigned dream. J1147
• Husband relates his wife's adultery in pretended dream. She dies from fright. J1147.1
• Miscellaneous means of detecting. J1149
• Feigned madness unmasked by threatening man's child. J1149.1
• Cheater discovered by fishing in the street. Man arouses the curiosity of the rascal who has swindled his wife. J1149.2
• Detection by disrobing in a dance. A man masking as a maiden has committed adultery with the queen. A clever girl by challenging him to disrobe in a dance exposes the imposture. J1149.3
• Urinalysis reveals coition as cure for illness. Treatment successful. J1149.4
• Detection of guilt by smile. Buried money is stolen from blind man. Latter has boy watch and notify him when passerby smiles at him. The smiler is the thief. J1149.5
• Thief detected by his answer to question. "How would you treat a woman who came into your possession?" Answer: "I would use her and then give her to the servants." This reveals his true character. J1149.6
• Thief posing as corpse detected by pricking soles of his feet. J1149.7
• Magistrate detects thief's complicity by associating cut hand with companion's severed head. J1149.8
• Magistrate finds thieving innkeepers guilty of arson. Silver buckles are not melted by the fire. J1149.9
• Truth detected by spies listening to reactions of defendants at night. J1149.10
• Washing test: defendants given basin of water. Guilty one wastes it uselessly. J1149.11