The Hare and his Ears
Those who love Aesop’s Fables might know the story of the “The Hare and his Ears” or “The Hare and his Shadow”. It is not so well known but it comes from the very large collection of the stories called as the Aesop’s Fables. It is the story of a timid rabbit who is afraid of everything.
Story
The king of the forest, the mighty Lion, was once eating a goat when the horns of the goat pierced him. He was angry. He roared loudly.
ROOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!
He was so angry that he called all the animals of the forest to a meeting.
The lion said, “Who dares wear such dangerous crowns on their hears? How dare anyone wear horns?”
The animals remained silent as they were afraid of the lion.
The Lion announced, “Hear me well! Anyone wearing horns should leave the kingdom by tomorrow. If I find anyone with horns, large or small, I shall kill them with my mighty claws.”
The animals were terrified. All the animals that were born with horns started to pack and leave the kingdom. The remaining animals were praying as they were afraid that the lion would still be angry.
There was a very timid rabbit and he was very afraid. When he came out of his burrow in the morning, the morning sun fell on his back. He saw the shadow and his ears looked like he had very big horns.
He said, “I shall pack my bags and leave, neighbour Squirrel”
The Squirrel said, “But you have no horns. Why should you leave?”
The Rabbit replied, “The Lion’s anger is blind. He will decide that my ears are horns no matter what I say. It is best if I leave.”
Moral of the story:
The moral of the story is “Do not give your enemies the slightest reason to attack your reputation. Your enemies will seize any excuse to attack you.” The moral can also be interpreted as “It is better to be safe than sorry”
Other stories which you can read
| The Dog and the Hides |
| The Cock, The Dog and the Fox |
| The Farmer and the Snake |
| The Farmer and the Stork |
| The Cat and the Birds |
Questions on “The Hare and his Ears“
- Who are the main characters of the story?
- What was the lion like?
- Who or what was the rabbit afraid of?
- Explain what happens at the end of the story?
- What is the moral of the story?
Answers:
- The main characters of the story are a rabbit and a lion.
- The lion was very powerful and angry. He was also unreasonable.
- The rabbit saw its shadow and was afraid that its ears looked like horns.
- The Rabbit understood that the Lion’s anger was blind and would decide that its ears were horns if it looked at its shadow. So it was best if he left.
- The moral of the story is Do not give your enemies the slightest reason to attack your reputation. Your enemies will seize any excuse to attack you.
The Hare and his Ears – PDF
Looking for the free downloadable PDF version of the The Hare and his Ears short story in English? If so, you’ve come to the right place. You can click on the link below to download the free story in PDF version format.
