Ancient Greece
Explore fables associated with the ancient Greek Aesop tradition and their later retellings. The regional label identifies that connection; it does not mean the surviving English wording is ancient or that every related plot began in Greece.
21 stories are in this region right now.
Aesop's Fables
Ages 6-8
The Bowman and the Lion
An archer wounds a lion with an arrow; when a fox urges fight, the lion flees the man whose messenger already hurts from afar.
Aesop's Fables
Ages 6-8
The Donkey and His Shadow
A traveller and a donkey owner start a hot-day quarrel over who may rest in the animal’s shadow, and while they argue, the donkey simply trots away.
The Dog and the Wolf
A skinny farm dog bargains with a wolf for time to grow fat on feast scraps, then greets him later from a stable roof out of reach.
Aesop's Fables
Ages 3-5
The Ant and the Dove
A dove drops a leaf to save a drowning ant, and before long the little ant finds a brave way to save the dove from a bird-catcher.
Ages 9-12
Echo and Narcissus
The nymph Echo can only repeat others’ words, and proud Narcissus, who scorns her, falls in love with his own reflection in a spring.
Aesop's Fables
Ages 9-12
The Donkey and the Mule
On a steep hill a tired donkey begs the mule to share his load, but the mule refuses and soon has to carry far more than he bargained for.
Aesop's Fables
Ages 9-12
The Boy Who Cried Wolf
A shepherd boy shouts wolf for fun until villagers stop coming; when a real wolf arrives, no one believes his cries for help.
Aesop's Fables
Ages 3-5
The Crow and the Fox
A fox flatters a crow into singing so the cheese in her beak falls; wit, he says, would have served her better than praise.
Aesop's Fables
Ages 3-5
The Hare and the Tortoise
A mocking hare naps mid-race while a tortoise keeps walking; the slow runner reaches the goal before the sleeper wakes up.