The Eagle and the Arrow Flashcards
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Flashcard Review
Flashcards: The Eagle and the Arrow
What is the moral of "The Eagle and the Arrow"?
The moral is: "We often give our enemies the means of our own destruction." The eagle discovers that the arrow which killed it was feathered with its own plumes, illustrating how our own resources, words, or actions can be turned against us by others.
What is the Perry Index number for this fable?
This fable is classified as Perry Index 276 ("Aquila et Sagitta" in Latin). The Perry Index is the standard classification system for Aesop's fables, compiled by scholar Ben Edwin Perry in 1952.
What is the origin of "The Eagle and the Arrow"?
The earliest known reference appears in <i>The Myrmidons</i>, a lost tragedy by Aeschylus written in the 5th century BCE, where it was said to be of Libyan origin. Aeschylus used the image to describe Achilles' guilt over the death of Patroclus. The fable was later collected in the Aesopic tradition and has been retold for over 2,500 years.
What does the eagle symbolize in this fable?
The eagle symbolizes power, pride, and invulnerability. Sitting on a high cliff, surveying the land with "keen and lordly eyes," it represents anyone who believes themselves untouchable. Its downfall by its own feathers suggests that strength and dominance carry within them the seeds of their own destruction.
How did Lord Byron use this fable in his poetry?
Lord Byron echoed the fable in <i>English Bards and Scotch Reviewers</i> (1809) with the lines: "So the struck eagle, stretch'd upon the plain, / No more through rolling clouds to soar again." He used the image to lament the early death of poet Henry Kirke White, drawing on the fable's themes of talent destroyed and potential cut short.
What is the difference between the eagle's physical wound and its emotional wound?
The physical wound from the arrow is mortal, but the emotional wound is worse. As the eagle says, "How much sharper are the wounds we give ourselves!" The recognition that its own feathers were used against it transforms a simple death into a tragedy of self-awareness. The 17th-century translator Roger L'Estrange captured this: "Nothing goes nearer a man in his misfortunes than to find himself undone by his own folly."
What is the meaning of "The Eagle and the Arrow" in modern life?
The fable remains relevant as a warning about how we inadvertently enable those who wish us harm. Sharing confidential information that gets leaked, trusting the wrong people with sensitive resources, or providing tools that are later used against us—these are all modern versions of the eagle's feathered arrow. The fable urges vigilance about what we give away and to whom.
What other Aesop fables explore similar themes of self-destruction?
Several Aesop fables deal with the consequences of pride and poor judgment: <a href="/author/aesop/short-story/the-lion-and-the-ass/" class="al-title">The Lion and the Ass</a> shows how overconfidence leads to humiliation, <a href="/author/aesop/short-story/the-fisherman-and-the-little-fish/" class="al-title">The Fisherman and the Little Fish</a> warns against greed that costs us what we already have, <a href="/author/aesop/short-story/the-fox-and-the-monkey/" class="al-title">The Fox and the Monkey</a> exposes the dangers of false pretenses, and <a href="/author/aesop/short-story/the-boy-bathing/" class="al-title">The Boy Bathing</a> illustrates how recklessness invites disaster.