One of the privileges of a freed man was the permission to take an active interest in public affairs, and Aesop did just that. It is said that at one time he was found in Corinth, and at another in Athens, endeavoring, by the narration of some of his wise fables, to reconcile the inhabitants of those cities to the administration of their respective rulers Periander and Pisistratus. Somehow, throughout history, these fables were recorded, and have remained just as prevalent in today's society as they were over 2,000 years ago. .
According to the American Heritage Dictionary, a fable is "a usually short narrative making an edifying or cautionary point and often employing as characters animals that speak and act like human beings." Aesop is credited with over 650 fables, all of them concluding with a moral lesson. These fables were not only a comment on society, but also a guideline on how to improve said society. One of his most famous fables, The Ants and the Grasshopper, stresses the importance of working hard. .
"The ants were spending a fine winter's day drying grain collected in the summertime. A Grasshopper, perishing with famine, passed by and earnestly begged for a little food. The Ants inquired of him, "Why did you not treasure up food during the summer?' He replied, "I had not leisure enough. I passed the days in singing." They then said in derision: "If you were foolish enough to sing all the summer, you must dance supperless to bed in the winter.".
The moral of the story? It is thrifty to prepare today for the wants of tomorrow. In this fable, Aesop was most likely chastising those in society who wasted their time imbibing and having fun, rather than preparing for the future and working hard. Another well-known fable and important fable of Aesop's is the Lion and the Mouse. .
"Once when a Lion was asleep a little Mouse began running up and down upon him; this soon wakened the Lion, who placed his huge paw upon him, and opened his big jaws to swallow him.
