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Aesop. "The Fox and the Goat"

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Aesop. Fables. "The Fox and the Goat"

A Fox, having fallen into a well, could find no means of escape. A Goat, overcome with thirst, came to the well, and, seeing the Fox, inquired if the water was good. The Fox, concealing his sad plight under a merry guise, indulged in lavish praise of the water, saying it was beyond measure excellent, and encouraged him to descend. The Goat, mindful only of his thirst, thoughtlessly jumped down, when, just as he quenched his thirst, the Fox informed him of the difficulty they were both in, and suggested a scheme for their common escape. "If," said he, "you will place your fore-feet upon the wall, and bend your head, I will run up your back and escape, and will help you out." On the Goat readily assenting to this proposal, the Fox leaped upon his back, and steadying himself with the goat's horns reached in safety the mouth of the well, and immediately made off as fast as he could. The Goat upbraided him with the breach of his bargain, when he turned round and cried out: "You foolish fellow! If you had as many brains in your head as you have hairs in your beard, you would never have gone down before you had inspected the way up, nor have exposed yourself to dangers from which you had determined upon no means of escape."

Look before you leap.

Define Each Word

  • plight
  • guise
  • indulge
  • assent
  • breach

Write the Correct Word from the Vocabulary

  1. Despite his doctor's advice, the ravenous gourmand ______________________ in large portions of richly decadent chocolate, butter-cream cake.
  2. It took two weeks for the poorly-armed rebels to ____________________ the royal army's main fortifications and to capture the ousted king.
  3. Mother Teresa was unusually sensitive to the ______________________ of the poor and the disenfranchised.
  4. The arms dealer merely nodded in ___________________ when he agreed to the price for six million AK-47 assault rifles to be sold to the war lord.
  5. Under the ____________________ of filial devotion, the unscrupulous daughter secured a large inheritance by flattering her ailing father constantly during the last year of his life.

Comprehension and Discussion: Answer Each Question in Complete Sentences

  1. Why does the goat join the fox in the well?
  2. How does the fox trick the goat into helping the fox out of the well? What should the goat have done instead?

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