Worksheet: drive, docs, pub
Slow speed video: HERE, Normal speed video: HERE, Storytelling video: HERE Quizlet: HERE
I started out The Brothers Grimm project with an introduction to the Brothers Grimm, so I figured I would do the same for Aesop.
I discovered during my research that there was a lot of confusion about Aesop's biography, or even whether he existed or not. (I never knew that before--I had just taken it for granted he was a historical figure.)
Because the goal of ESL materials is to simply, and not to complicate, I smoothed out his conflicting biographies into one simple narrative.
Also, as I was looking over some of Aesop's fables, I discovered that many of them have some pretty whacked out morals.
I don't want to skip over any, since I'm a completist, but I did decide to add a caveat in this introduction:
When you read the moral of a fable, it’s important to remember that you don’t have to agree with it. Many people have different opinions. And also, modern people think differently than ancient people. So you must think about the moral carefully before you decide whether you agree or disagree with it. Sometimes you will agree with the moral, and sometimes you will disagree with it.
Aesop’s Fables
Video slow speed: https://youtu.be/YIfwv7qHDO4
Video normal speed: https://youtu.be/dRb4y7NcBjc
Video Storytelling: https://youtu.be/tXYhNR17BcU
Quizlet: https://quizlet.com/_57qlns
Suggested Use:
Step 1: Look at the vocabulary. Check any words that you don’t know in your dictionary.
Step 2: Listen to the video. (Listen only. Don’t look at the reading yet).
Step 3: Practice the vocabulary on Quizlet
Step 4: Watch the video again. This time look at the reading. Read and listen at the same time.
Step 5: Practice the vocabulary on Quizlet again.
Step 6: Listen one last time. The last time, don’t look at the reading.
Vocabulary
Proper names:
Aesop’s Fables
“Aesop’s Fables” refers to a collection of stories from ancient Greece.
So, who is Aesop and what is a fable?
Well, let’s talk about fables first. A fable is a special type of story. There are three general characteristics of a fable.
Firstly, fables usually are stories about animals. In fables, the animals can talk, and can think, just like humans.
Secondly, fables are usually very short stories. Most fables are only 2 or 3 paragraphs long.
And thirdly, fables usually teach us something about how to live our lives. Most fables have a moral at the end. The moral tells us what the story means, and what we can learn from it.
When you read the moral of a fable, it’s important to remember that you don’t have to agree with it. Many people have different opinions. And also, modern people think differently than ancient people. So you must think about the moral carefully before you decide whether you agree or disagree with it. Sometimes you will agree with the moral, and sometimes you will disagree with it.
Next, who was Aesop?
According to legend, Aesop was the person who created all of these fables.
Why do I say “according to legend” ? Because no one is sure whether Aesop was a real person or not. Some people think that the fables were created by many different authors, and were collected together over time into one book. And they think that Aesop was just a name given to this collection of stories--like Mother Goose is to English nursery rhymes, or Scheherazade is to Arabian Nights. (If you don’t know Mother Goose or Scheherazade, you can look them up. They were both believed to be famous storytellers, but they were not real people.)
However, other people believe that Aesop was a real person. And maybe he was. We can never know for sure.
According to the legend, Aesop was born in ancient Greece in 620 BC. (“BC” stands for “Before Christ”. According to the Christian calendar, Jesus Christ was born in the year 1. So 620 BC is 620 years before the year 1.)
Aesop was born as a slave. (A “slave” is someone who is owned by someone else and has to work for them. Nowadays we think that slavery is bad, but it was very common in the ancient world.) According to legend, Aesop was very ugly. But although he was not handsome, he was clever. He could create very interesting stories, and people used to travel very far to listen to his stories.
Because Aesop’s stories were so popular, many people wanted him as their slave. He was sold to different masters. But eventually, he was given his freedom.
As a free man, Aesop became involved in politics. (“Politics” means the activity of deciding the government. For example, deciding who the leaders of the country will be, or deciding what the laws of the country will be.) Many great rulers and kings came to Aesop to ask for his advice. But Aesop would never give them his advice directly. Instead, Aesop would tell them a short story--a fable--and the kings and rulers would have to decide for themselves what the lesson of the fable was.
However, one day, in the Greek town of Delphi, Aesop was asked for his advice, and he told a fable that made the people very angry. We do not know which particular fable Aesop told on that day, but whatever it was, the people of the town got so angry that they killed Aesop.
And so, the life of Aesop came to an end. But the people of Greece still remembered his fables, and many years later, we still remember these fables.
You probably know many of Aesop’s Fables already. Do you know the story of the race between the turtle and the rabbit? Or the story of the boy who said he saw a wolf? Or the story of the ant and the grasshopper? The lion and the mouse? The town mouse and the country mouse? The fox and the grapes? The goose and the golden eggs? These stories, and many more, are Aesop’s Fables.
Aesop’s Fables
Video slow speed: https://youtu.be/YIfwv7qHDO4
Video normal speed: https://youtu.be/dRb4y7NcBjc
1. How many general characteristics of a fable are there?
2. What does the moral tell us?
3. Was Aesop a real person?
4. Where was Aesop born?
5. What was very common in the ancient world?
6. What did Aesop look like?
7. After he got his freedom, what did Aesop become involved in?
8. What did many great rulers and kings want from Aesop?
9. In which town was Aesop killed?
10. Why was Aesop killed?
Answers
1. How many general characteristics of a fable are there?
Three
2. What does the moral tell us?
What the story means, and what we can learn from it.
3. Was Aesop a real person?
No one is sure.
4. Where was Aesop born?
In ancient Greece
5. What was very common in the ancient world?
Slavery
6. What did Aesop look like?
He was ugly.
7. After he got his freedom, what did Aesop become involved in?
Politics
8. What did many great rulers and kings want from Aesop?
His advice
9. In which town was Aesop killed?
Delphi
10. Why was Aesop killed?
He told a story that made the people of Delphi angry.
Vocabulary
according to - as said by someone or shown by something:
According to Susie, he didn't even have a girlfriend.
based on a particular system or plan:
Children are allocated to schools according to the area in which they live.
activity - he doing of something, or something that you are doing, have done, or could do:
Carbon dioxide is also produced by human activity.
advice - suggestions about what you think someone should do or how they should do something:
She asked me for advice about writing a book.
although - despite the fact that:
She walked home by herself, although she knew it was dangerous.
already - before now, or before a particular time in the past:
I've already told him.
ancient - from a long time ago:
This is a story from ancient Greece.
animal - something that lives and moves but is not a person, bird, fish, or insect:
This is a wild animal.
ant - a small, black or red insect that lives in groups on the ground
author - someone who writes a book, article, etc:
He is a popular author of children's fiction.
BC - abbreviation for Before Christ: used to show that a particular year came before the birth of Christ:
He was born in the year 331 BC.
believe - to think that something is true, or that what someone says is true:
They believe that their health has suffered because of the chemicals.
born - When a person or animal is born, they come out of their mother's body and start to exist:
She was born in London in 1973.
calendar - something that shows all the days, weeks, and months of the year
the Christian calendar - the system used to measure and arrange the days, weeks, months and special events of the year according to Christian tradition
carefully - giving a lot of attention to what you are doing so that you do not have an accident, make a mistake, or damage something:
It was a carefully prepared speech.
characteristic - a typical or obvious quality that makes one person or thing different from others:
Does he have any distinguishing physical characteristics?
Christian - adjective form of Christianity
clever - able to learn and understand things quickly and easily:
He is a clever student.
collect - to get things from different places and bring them together:
The police are continuing to collect information.
collection - a group of things or people:
There's quite a collection of toothbrushes in the bathroom.
common - happening often or existing in large numbers:
Injuries are common in sports such as hockey.
country - the areas that are away from towns and cities
create - to make something happen or exist:
The project will create more than 500 jobs.
decide - to choose something after thinking about several possibilities:
I haven't decided whether or not to tell him.
differently - (ADVERB) not the same as someone or something
directly - clearly and honestly:
Let me answer that question directly.
disagree - to have a different opinion from someone else about something:
I disagree with most of what he said.
egg - an oval object produced by a female chicken, that you eat as food:
This is a boiled egg.
else - different from someone or something:
I don't like it here. Let's go somewhere else.
I didn't say that. It must have been someone else.
example - something that is typical of the group of things that you are talking about:
This is a good example of medieval Chinese architecture.
for example - used to give an example of what you are talking about:
Some people, students for example, can get cheaper tickets.
eventually - in the end, especially after a long time:
We all hope that an agreement can be reached eventually.
fable - a short, traditional story, usually involving animals, which is intended to show people how to behave:
famous - known or recognized by many people:
She is a famous actress.
firstly - used to introduce the first idea, reason, etc in a series:
The aim of this activity is firstly to have fun, and secondly to keep fit
fox - a wild animal like a dog with red-brown fur, a pointed nose, and a long, thick tail
freedom - a situation in which someone is no longer a prisoner
general - not detailed, but including the most basic or necessary information:
These leaflets contain some general information about the school.
golden - made of gold or like gold:
This is a golden ring.
goose - a large water bird similar to a duck
grape - a small, round, green, purple or red fruit that grows in large, close groups and is often used to make wine:
This is a bunch of grapes.
grasshopper - a green insect that jumps about using its long back legs
Greek - coming from or relating to Greece
handsome - A handsome man is attractive:
He is tall, dark and handsome.
however - used when you are about to say something that is surprising compared with what you have just said:
He had always been a successful businessman. Recently, however, things have not been going well for him.
human - a man, woman, or child:
The disease affects both humans and animals.
instead - in the place of someone or something else:
If you don't want pizza, we can have pasta instead.
involve - to make someone be part of an activity or process:
I prefer teaching methods that actively involve students in learning.
involved - to do things and be part of an activity or event:
How did you get involved in acting?
kill - to make someone or something die:
Sunday's bomb killed 19 people.
king - a male ruler in some countries:
This is King Richard II.
law - an official rule in a country:
There are laws against drinking in the street.
legend - an old story or set of stories from ancient times:
These are the legends of King Arthur.
lesson - an experience that teaches you how to behave better in a similar situation in the future:
My parents made me pay back all the money, and it was a lesson I never forgot.
lion - a large, wild animal of the cat family, with light brown fur
look up - to look at a book or computer in order to find information:
I looked it up in the dictionary.
master - In the past, a slave's master was the man that they worked for.
modern - relating to the present time and not to the past:
This is a modern society.
moral - something you learn from a story or event about how to behave:
The moral of the story is never lie.
mouse - a small animal with fur and a long, thin tail
nowadays - at the present time, especially when compared to the past:
Everything seems more expensive nowadays.
nursery - a place where babies and young children are looked after without their parents
nursery rhyme - a short poem or song for young children
opinion - a thought or belief about something or someone:
What's your opinion about the matter?
paragraph - a part of a text that contains at least one sentence and starts on a new line
particular - used to talk about one thing or person and not others:
Is there any particular restaurant you'd like to go to?
politics - ideas and activities relating to how a country or area is governed:
He has little interest in local politics.
popular - liked by many people:
'Jack' was the most popular boy's name.
probably - used to mean that something is very likely:
I'll probably be home by midnight.
rabbit - a small animal with fur and long ears that lives in a hole in the ground
race - a competition in which people run, ride, drive, etc against each other in order to see who is the fastest:
She finished the race in third position.
refer - If writing or information refers to someone or something, it relates to that person or thing:
The sales figures refer to UK sales only.
rhyme - If a word rhymes with another word, the end part of the words sound the same:
'Moon' rhymes with 'June'.
ruler - the leader of a country
secondly - used for introducing the second reason, idea, etc:
I want two things: firstly, more money, and secondly, better working hours.
short - A short book or other piece of writing has few pages or words:
This is a short story.
slave - someone who is owned by someone else and has to work for them:
He treats his mother like a slave.
slavery - the system of owning slaves, or the condition of being a slave
special - better or more important than usual things:
I'm cooking something special for her birthday.
still - used to say that something is continuing to happen now or that someone is continuing to do something now:
He's still here if you want to speak to him.
storyteller - a person who writes, tells, or reads stories
themselves - the reflexive form of the pronoun 'they':
They're both 16 - they're old enough to look after themselves.
turtle - an animal with four legs and a hard shell that lives mainly in water
type - a person or thing that is part of a group of people or things that have similar qualities, or a group of people or things that have similar qualities:
They sell over 20 different types of cheese.
ugly - unpleasant to look at:
It hurt my feelings when he said I was ugly.
whether - used to talk about a choice between two or more possibilities:
Someone's got to tell her, whether it's you or me.
I didn't know whether or not to go.
wolf - a wild animal like a large dog
Aesop - a Greek fabulist and storyteller credited with a number of fables now collectively known as Aesop's Fables
Jesus - the Jewish holy man believed by Christians to be the Son of God, and on whose life and teachings Christianity is based
Christ - a title for the saviour and redeemer who would bring salvation to the Jewish people and mankind. Christians believe Jesus is the Jewish messiah foretold in both the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament. Christ, used by Christians as both a name and a title, is synonymous with Jesus.
Mother Goose - the imaginary author of a collection of fairy tales and nursery rhymes
Scheherazade - a character and the storyteller in One Thousand and One Nights.
Greece - a country located in Southern Europe, with a population of approximately 11 million as of 2016. Athens is the nation's capital and largest city, followed by Thessaloniki.
Delphi - famous as the ancient sanctuary that grew rich as the seat of Pythia, the oracle who was consulted about important decisions throughout the ancient classical world.
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