Aesop

Aesop was a Greek fabulist and storyteller who is credited with a number of fables now collectively known as Aesop's Fables. Although his existence remains uncertain and no writings by him survive, numerous tales attributed to him were gathered across the centuries and in many languages in a storytelling tradition that continues to this day. Many of the fables are characterized by animals and inanimate objects that speak, solve problems, and generally have human characteristics. Scattered details of Aesop's life can be found in ancient sources, including Aristotle, Herodotus, and Plutarch. An ancient literary work called The Aesop Romance tells an episodic, probably highly fictional version of his life, including the traditional description of him as a strikingly ugly slave who by his cleverness acquires freedom and becomes an adviser to kings and city-states. Older spellings of his name have included Esop(e) and Isope. Depictions of Aesop in popular culture over the last 2,500 years have included many works of art and his appearance as a character in numerous books, films, plays, and television programs. The earliest Greek sources, including Aristotle, indicate that Aesop was born around 620 BCE in the Greek colony of Mesembria. A number of later writers from the Roman imperial period say that he was born in Phrygia. The 3rd-century poet Callimachus called him "Aesop of Sardis," and the later writer Maximus of Tyre called him "the sage of Lydia." By Aristotle and Herodotus we are told that Aesop was a slave in Samos; that his slave masters were first a man named Xanthus, and then a man named Iadmon; that he must eventually have been freed, since he argued as an advocate for a wealthy Samian; and that he met his end in the city of Delphi. Plutarch tells us that Aesop came to Delphi on a diplomatic mission from King Croesus of Lydia, that he insulted the Delphians, that he was sentenced to death on a trumped-up charge of temple theft, and that he was thrown from a cliff (after which the Delphians suffered pestilence and famine). Before this fatal episode, Aesop met with Periander of Corinth, where Plutarch has him dining with the Seven Sages of Greece and sitting beside his friend Solon, whom he had met in Sardis. The stories attributed to Aesop were initially transmitted orally. The first mention of written collections of fables credited to Aesop is in Herodotus's Histories (Book II.134), where he refers to "the fables of Aesop written down." The earliest surviving collections date from the 4th century BCE. The most famous collection is attributed to Phaedrus (c. 15 BCE – c. 50 CE), a freedman of Augustus who adapted the fables into Latin verse. Another collection is attributed to Babrius (c. 2nd century CE), who wrote in Greek iambic verse. Aesop's Fables have been translated into many languages and have become part of the global cultural heritage. They have been used for moral education, political satire, social commentary, literary inspiration, and entertainment. Some of the most famous fables include The Tortoise and the Hare, The Fox and the Grapes, The Lion and the Mouse, The Ant and the Grasshopper, The Boy Who Cried Wolf, and The Goose That Laid the Golden Eggs.