Concept, Structure and Types of fables

We explain what is the fable and what are the parts of this literary creation, how they are classified, examples and what is the moral.

A fable is a subgenre of narrative literature with a pedagogical purpose.

What is a fable?

A fable is a generally short literary creation, written in both prose and verse and starring animals, animated objects or people, who have similar communicative abilities for the purpose of the story.

It is a subgenre of narrative literature, whose mission is fundamentally pedagogical: to illustrate through imaginary situations the customs, vices or virtues of a specific human region or, even, of all humanity.> It is carried out with training intentions in ethics, tradition or morals , so the usual target of a fable is children.

This teaching is usually summarized , at the end of the story, in a moral or teaching.The fable should not be confused with the sermon, the parable or the apologists (which are also didactic genres) or with the story or the poem (which as art forms always lack moral).

The fable is an extremely ancient genre: clay tablets from the Mesopotamian era have been found with stories of cunning, ungrateful or arrogant animals.In addition, were profusely cultivated during the classical era by the Greek Aesop , author of many of the fables we still read, and by Fedro, and later by the Romans Horacio and Flavio Alviano.

In the Middle Ages the fable was reborn by the hand of anonymous authors, and abounded those translated from Arabic or other languages.In the Renaissance it reappeared, by authors such as Jean de La Fontaine.

See also: Omniscient Narrator.

Parts of a fable

At the beginning of the fable the characters are presented and the initial points are established.

The fabula is composed of three parts:

• Start.In which the characters are presented and the initial points of the story are established, such as their geographical or temporal location, etc.It is usually short and to the point.
• Complicacion.Es the development of the plot that leads to a situation of moral or ethical problems, derived from the characteristics or initial actions of the character.
• Unlink.Whether happy or not, it is the final part of the story where the consequences occur and the moral or final teaching that gives the reader this story is enunciated.

Fabula types

The mythological fable collects the religious or mystical content of a cultural tradition.

Fables can be classified into:

• Agonales.They are based on the confrontation of two behaviors or opinions between two protagonists or the protagonist and the antagonist, to ultimately reward one and punish the other.
• Mythological: Those that collect the religious or mystical content of a cultural tradition, such as their gods or foundational stories.
• Of animals.Those whose protagonists are beings from the animal kingdom, provided with human traits such as speech or intelligence.

Fabula example

Fabula: The donkey and the horse

A merchant was always traveling in the company of a horse and a horse: the donkey carried the heavy load and the horse instead carried nothing.On one of those trips, the poor donkey felt that his forces were not enough to reach the nearest city.Almost about to faint, he said to the horse:

-This load is so heavy that I won't be able to bear it for another minute.If you appreciate me, horse, put a pair of these bundles on your back.

-I'm sorry, ass-answered the horse-but I was not born to carry such heavy loads, but to gallop free and beautiful on the roads.

And having said that, he continued as if nothing.A while later, totally exhausted, the ass collapsed and died of so much fatigue.Upon realizing what happened, the merchant grabbed everything that the donkey carried and put it on the loin of the horse, next to the skin of the unfortunate ass.As soon as he felt the heavy burden on his back, the horse told himself:

-How silly I have been! For not relieving the donkey's suffering a little, I see myself now forced to carry everything he wore and even his own skin!

And the moral of this story is that whoever does not help the neighbor for believing himself superior or better than him, will end up harming himself and sooner or later take his place.

Moral

The moral is the teaching that leaves a fable.

The moral is the lesson or teaching about life that is obtained after reading a fable or some children's stories.It is a lesson usually of moral or ethical indole , that is, that invites certain behaviors and modes of reasoning, and that judges or discredits others, considered negative.