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DE LUPIS ET OVIBUS

 

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Source: Aesop's Fables, 1687 (illustrated by Francis Barlow).

 

Introduction: This is one of the many stories about wolves and sheep that you can find in Aesop's fables. In this particular fable, the sheep put themselves in danger by giving up the protection provided by the sheep dogs. In ancient Greece, the orator Demosthenes was said to have used this same fable to try to warn the Athenians to beware of Alexander the Great. When Alexander conquered Athens in 335 B.C.E., he insisted that the Athenians turn Demosthenes over to him, but Demosthenes persuaded the Athenians not to do what Alexander asked; according to Demosthenes, Alexander was like the wolf in the story, the Athenians were the sheep, and he, Demosthenes, was like a loyal sheepdog, trying to defend the Athenians from their enemies. For another fable about a misguided alliance, see the story of the doves who elected the hawk as their king. For a fable that shows how the wolf tries to justify his preying on the sheep, see the story of the wolf and the lamb at the stream.

 

Latin Text:

 

Foedus aliquando fuit inter Lupos et Oves, quibus natura discordia est. Obsides utrimque tradebantur. Oves, in suam partem, vigilem Canum custodiam, Lupi suos Catulos tradiderunt. Quietis Ovibus ac pascentibus, Lupuli matrum desiderio ululatus edunt. Tum Lupi irruentes foedus fidemque solutam clamitant Ovesque, Canum praesidio destitutas, laniant.

 

Here is a segmented version to help you see the grammatical patterns:

 

Foedus aliquando fuit

inter Lupos et Oves,

quibus natura discordia est.

Obsides utrimque tradebantur.

Oves,

in suam partem,

vigilem Canum custodiam,

Lupi

suos Catulos tradiderunt.

Quietis Ovibus ac pascentibus,

Lupuli

matrum desiderio

ululatus edunt.

Tum Lupi irruentes

foedus fidemque solutam

clamitant

Ovesque,

Canum praesidio destitutas,

laniant.

 

Translation: Once upon a time there was a treaty between the wolves and the sheep, who by their very nature are in conflict with one another. They exchanged hostages with one another. The sheep, for their part, handed over the vigilant watch of their dogs, while the wolves handed over their pups. When the sheep were relaxed and grazing, the wolf pups burst out with howls, wanting their mothers. Then the wolves rushed in, shouting that the treaty and faith between them was abolished and they butchered the sheep, who were bereft of the protection of their dogs.

 

[This translation is meant as a help in understanding the story, not as a "crib" for the Latin. I have not hesitated to change the syntax to make it flow more smoothly in English, altering the verb tense consistently to narrative past tense, etc.]

 

Parallels: For parallel versions, see Perry 153.

 

Related Links: Crossword Puzzle

 

Illustration: Here is an illustration from this edition, by the renowned artist Francis Barlow; click on the image for a larger view.

 

 

 

 

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