The Wolf and the Stork
In La Fontaine's fables, the wolf symbolizes power. And he is often a bad guy.
On the opposite, the stork, who looks like a doctor with her long beak, is a good, honest and naive person.
And good and honest people should be very careful when dealing with powerful beings or organizations.
Le Loup et la Cigogne
Les loups mangent gloutonnement.
Un loup donc étant de frairie
Se pressa, dit-on, tellement
Qu’il en pensa perdre la vie :
Un os lui demeura bien avant au gosier.
De bonheur pour ce loup, qui ne pouvait crier,
Près de là passe une cigogne.
Il lui fait signe ; elle accourt.
Voilà l’opératrice aussitôt en besogne.
Elle retira l’os ; puis, pour un si bon tour,
Elle demanda son salaire.
Votre salaire ! dit le loup :
Vous riez, ma bonne commère !
Quoi ! ce n’est pas encor beaucoup
D’avoir de mon gosier retiré votre cou !
Allez, vous êtes une ingrate :
Ne tombez jamais sous ma patte.
The Wolf and the Stork
Wolves eat greedily.
Such a wolf attending a party
Hurried so much to eat, they say,
That he thought of losing his life:
A bone remained deep inside his throat.
Fortunately for this wolf, who could not shout,
Nearby passes a stork.
He beckons to her; she comes running.
And she, the operator is immediately at work.
She pulled out the bone; then, for her good deed,
She asked for her salary.
Your salary ! said the wolf:
You laugh, my good woman!
What! it's still not much
To have taken your neck out of my throat!
Come on, you're ungrateful:
Never fall under my paw.
First Fable: The Circada and the Ant
Previous fable: The Drunkard and his Wife
Next fable: The Fox and the Grapes
Should we help someone who doesn't deserve it?
A wolf is normally an animal that is always in a position of strength, but the bone stuck in its throat brings it inexorably closer to the grim reaper. He asks the nice stork for help, who doesn't hesitate for a second to operate on him and remove the bone that was going to kill him. So here is the first mistake of a good person (the stork): helping someone who doesn't deserve it (the wolf).
Once the bone has been freed from its throat, the wolf regains its position of strength. The stork, being quite happy with the work she has done, quite naturally asks for financial compensation. The wolf refuses and kindly explains to it that her salary was not to have been killed. The wolf took advantage of the stork's kindness which saved his life and the worst thing is that he doesn't even thank her for the service she has rendered him. The wolf is incapable of gratitude towards a weaker one.
We all have seen similar behavior in our life. So the thing to do, when asked for help from a powerful entity, is to check the reputation and the history of the entity before giving the help. If it is expensive for you, get a signed contract before helping.
Doesn't the wolf's behavior remind you of a certain ex-president of the United States?