Theme (The Flight of Icarus + The People Could Fly)

1. a. A fable is a type of folktale. Read the following fable by Aesop.

Once upon a time, a fox was out walking in the woods. He did not see a well in the ground ahead, and he fell right into it. It was too deep for him to climb out. After several hours passed, a goat came walking by. The goat was feeling thirsty and saw the fox in the well.

"How's the water down there?" asked the goat.

"Why, hello, Goat," said the fox.  "The water tastes great. Why don't you come in and have a sip?"

The goat jumped into the well and leaned down to start drinking. Quickly, the fox leaped onto the goat's back and used her horns to spring up and out of the well.

"Oh no!" said the goat. "Now I'm stuck down here. Please help me!"

But the fox only said, "That was your mistake."

And he ran off into the woods.

Which of the following BEST describes a theme of the text?

1. b. A fable is a type of folktale. Read the following fable by Aesop.

Once upon a time, a fox was out walking in the woods. He did not see a well in the ground ahead, and he fell right into it. It was too deep for him to climb out. After several hours passed, a goat came walking by. The goat was feeling thirsty and saw the fox in the well.

"How's the water down there?" asked the goat.

"Why, hello, Goat," said the fox.  "The water tastes great. Why don't you come in and have a sip?"

The goat jumped into the well and leaned down to start drinking. Quickly, the fox leaped onto the goat's back and used her horns to spring up and out of the well.

"Oh no!" said the goat. "Now I'm stuck down here. Please help me!"

But the fox only said, "That was your mistake."

And he ran off into the woods.

Which character trait of the fox's is revealed by her actions through the fable?

1. c. A fable is a type of folktale. Read the following fable by Aesop.

Once upon a time, a fox was out walking in the woods. He did not see a well in the ground ahead, and he fell right into it. It was too deep for him to climb out. After several hours passed, a goat came walking by. The goat was feeling thirsty and saw the fox in the well.

"How's the water down there?" asked the goat.

"Why, hello, Goat," said the fox.  "The water tastes great. Why don't you come in and have a sip?"

The goat jumped into the well and leaned down to start drinking. Quickly, the fox leaped onto the goat's back and used her horns to spring up and out of the well.

"Oh no!" said the goat. "Now I'm stuck down here. Please help me!"

But the fox only said, "That was your mistake."

And he ran off into the woods.

What values of the people who told this story are evident in this fable?

1. d. A fable is a type of folktale. Read the following fable by Aesop.

Once upon a time, a fox was out walking in the woods. He did not see a well in the ground ahead, and he fell right into it. It was too deep for him to climb out. After several hours passed, a goat came walking by. The goat was feeling thirsty and saw the fox in the well.

"How's the water down there?" asked the goat.

"Why, hello, Goat," said the fox.  "The water tastes great. Why don't you come in and have a sip?"

The goat jumped into the well and leaned down to start drinking. Quickly, the fox leaped onto the goat's back and used her horns to spring up and out of the well.

"Oh no!" said the goat. "Now I'm stuck down here. Please help me!"

But the fox only said, "That was your mistake."

And he ran off into the woods.

Which of the following BEST describes the purpose the people had for telling this folktale?

2. a. A fable is a type of folktale. Read the following fable by Aesop.

Once upon a time, there was a war between the animals of the air and the animals of the land. The eagle would hunt and eat the rabbit. The owl was never safe from the fox.

The bat had wings like the flying animals, but it had teeth like the land animals. Unsure which side to join, the bat joined whichever side was winning.  When the air animals were ahead, the bat fought along with the air animals. When the land animals won a battle, the bat joined them.

After many years, both sides decided to end the war. There was peace across the earth. But the animals could not forget what the bat had done. Both the air animals and the land animals felt tricked by the bat. They decided to drive the bat away. And that is why the bat hides away during the day and goes out only at night.

Which of the following BEST describes a theme of the text?

2. b. A fable is a type of folktale. Read the following fable by Aesop.

Once upon a time, there was a war between the animals of the air and the animals of the land. The eagle would hunt and eat the rabbit. The owl was never safe from the fox.

The bat had wings like the flying animals, but it had teeth like the land animals. Unsure which side to join, the bat joined whichever side was winning.  When the air animals were ahead, the bat fought along with the air animals. When the land animals won a battle, the bat joined them.

After many years, both sides decided to end the war. There was peace across the earth. But the animals could not forget what the bat had done. Both the air animals and the land animals felt tricked by the bat. They decided to drive the bat away. And that is why the bat hides away during the day and goes out only at night.

What values of the people who told this story are evident in this fable?

3. a. Read the following myth from the Yoruba people of West Africa.

The god Eshu, who loved to play tricks, walked down the main road in a small village. He wore a hat that was red on one side and white on the other. Two friends stood on opposite sides of the road. One saw the red side of the hat. The other saw the white side. Later, the two friends talked about the strange man in the hat.

"The hat was red," said the first friend.

"No, you are wrong. The hat was white," said the second friend.

"Do you think I'm lying?" asked the first friend. "The hat was as red as blood!"

"Do you think I'm blind?" cried the second friend. "The hat was as white as milk!"

The friends got into a fight, both believing they were right. The tricky Eshu had been watching them. Laughing, he went up to the angry friends.

"Look, you fools!" he said. "My hat is red on one side and white on the other."

What is the main theme or lesson of the myth?

3. b. Read the following myth from the Yoruba people of West Africa.

The god Eshu, who loved to play tricks, walked down the main road in a small village. He wore a hat that was red on one side and white on the other. Two friends stood on opposite sides of the road. One saw the red side of the hat. The other saw the white side. Later, the two friends talked about the strange man in the hat.

"The hat was red," said the first friend.

"No, you are wrong. The hat was white," said the second friend.

"Do you think I'm lying?" asked the first friend. "The hat was as red as blood!"

"Do you think I'm blind?" cried the second friend. "The hat was as white as milk!"

The friends got into a fight, both believing they were right. The tricky Eshu had been watching them. Laughing, he went up to the angry friends.

"Look, you fools!" he said. "My hat is red on one side and white on the other."

What values of the people who told this story are evident in this myth?

4. a. A fable is a type of folktale. Read the following fable by Aesop.

A group of sailors set sail on a long voyage. They brought along a monkey to keep them company. After several weeks at sea, there was a terrible storm. The choppy waves tossed around the small ship, and both the sailors and the monkey were thrown into the sea.

A dolphin saw the monkey in the water and rescued him. The dolphin swam to a nearby island, carrying the monkey on her back. When they arrived at the island, the dolphin asked, "Have you been here before?"

The monkey said, "Yes, I have. Actually, I am the king of this island."

Of course, that was not true. In fact, no one lived on the island at all.

The dolphin replied, "Good. Then you no longer need me."

And she swam off, leaving the monkey stuck on the island.

What is the main theme or lesson of the fable?

5. a. A fable is a type of folktale. Read the following fable by Aesop.

There once was a clever fox who loved playing tricks. He invited his friend the stork over for dinner one day. When dinner was served, the poor bird saw that the meal was soup served in a flat dish. Try as she might, the stork could not drink the soup with her long, thin beak.

"I'm sorry you aren't enjoying the dinner," the fox said, laughing to himself over his trick.

"Oh, it's no problem at all," the stork said, acting very polite. "You must join me for dinner next time."

Soon the stork invited the fox to her house for dinner. The fox had worked hard all day and was very hungry. But when the stork brought out the food, the fox got a surprise.

The dinner was served in tall, narrow jars. With her long beak, the stork had no trouble gobbling up the tasty food. The fox's mouth did not fit in the jar, so he went home hungry.

What is the main theme or lesson of the fable?

6. a. Read the following Greek myth.

Sisyphus, the king of Corinth, was a clever man known for his trickery. He would steal and lie whenever he could get away with it, sometimes even fooling the gods. After one too many tricks, the god Zeus decided to punish Sisyphus.

Zeus sent Thanatos, the god of death, to tie Sisyphus in chains and take him down to the underworld, the land of the dead. But Sisyphus was up to his old tricks. He asked Thanatos to show him how the chains worked, and then managed to chain Thanatos instead so he could escape.

Angry, Zeus sent another god to take Sisyphus back to the underworld for good. Sisyphus was given a heavy boulder to push up a tall hill. Zeus told Sisyphus that he had to push the giant rock over the top of the hill to the other side. Using all his might, Sisyphus tried and tried to push the boulder over the top of the hill. Yet each time he reached the top, the boulder would roll back down.

He went on pushing the boulder up the hill, over and over again, forever.

What is the main theme or lesson of the fable?

6.b. Read the following Greek myth.

Sisyphus, the king of Corinth, was a clever man known for his trickery. He would steal and lie whenever he could get away with it, sometimes even fooling the gods. After one too many tricks, the god Zeus decided to punish Sisyphus.

Zeus sent Thanatos, the god of death, to tie Sisyphus in chains and take him down to the underworld, the land of the dead. But Sisyphus was up to his old tricks. He asked Thanatos to show him how the chains worked, and then managed to chain Thanatos instead so he could escape.

Angry, Zeus sent another god to take Sisyphus back to the underworld for good. Sisyphus was given a heavy boulder to push up a tall hill. Zeus told Sisyphus that he had to push the giant rock over the top of the hill to the other side. Using all his might, Sisyphus tried and tried to push the boulder over the top of the hill. Yet each time he reached the top, the boulder would roll back down.

He went on pushing the boulder up the hill, over and over again, forever.

Which of the following BEST describes the purpose the Greeks had for telling this myth?

7.a. A fable is a type of folktale. Read this fable by Aesop.

One morning a fox was looking for something to eat for breakfast. He noticed a crow sitting in a tree. The crow had a piece of cheese in her beak.

No need to keep looking, thought the tricky fox. I'll have that cheese for my breakfast.

The fox walked up to the tree and said, "Good morning, pretty bird!"

The crow carefully watched the fox. She kept her beak closed and didn't say a word. She didn't want to lose her cheese.

"What a beautiful crow you are!" said the fox. "Your feathers are so shiny! Your wings are so lovely! Such a beautiful bird must have a beautiful voice to match. Please sing just one song for me. Then I'll call you the Queen of Birds!"

Hearing these kind words, the crow forgot all about her cheese. She would love to be known as the Queen of Birds! She opened her beak wide to sing. As she did, out fell the cheese, straight into the fox's open mouth.

"Thank you," the fox said sweetly. "You certainly do have a voice, but where is your brain?"

What is the theme or lesson of this fable?

8. a. A fable is a type of folktale. Read this fable by Aesop.

On a beautiful beach, a mother crab and her young son were walking together. The mother crab quickly turned to her little son.

"Why do you always walk sideways like that?" she scolded him loudly. "You should walk straight forward! Make sure you walk with your toes turned out, too."

The young crab wanted so much to please his dear mother.

"Please show me how to walk the right way!" he said to her. "I want to learn how to walk straight forward. I want to learn how to turn my toes out."

"Fine, I'll show you," the mother crab said proudly. She tried to walk straight forward through the sand. It didn't work. She walked sideways instead. She tried again. Still, she walked sideways. No matter how hard she tried, she could only walk to the side. Next, she tried to turn her toes out. It didn't work, and she tripped. She tried again. Every time she tried to turn her toes out, she tripped and fell flat on her nose.

What is the theme or lesson of this fable?

9. a. Read the following folktale from Ghana.

Ama was hunting outside his village. Suddenly, he heard the sound of beautiful singing. The voice was unlike anything he had heard before. He followed the lovely sound and discovered, to his surprise, a tortoise!

Day after day, he came to hear the tortoise sing. One day he asked if he could take her home. She didn't want to go but finally said, "I'll go with you, but I'll only sing for you alone."

Ama agreed.

Soon, though, he wanted to show off the tortoise. The chief would be so happy to hear such music! Ama himself would be treated with great honor and respect! He told everyone in the village about the singing tortoise, but no one believed him. They laughed at him and told him he was crazy.

"Very well," Ama said. "I'll show you." The next day, he brought the tortoise to the village square. Everyone gathered around and waited. The tortoise would not sing. Ama tried everything, but she was silent. The chief thought Ama had tricked them and sent him away forever.

After the chief left, the tortoise spoke. "I was happy in the forest, singing my song. If he hadn't brought me here, none of this would have happened."

What is the theme of this folktale?