Fables and Fairytales

Fables and Fairytales
For hundreds of years, fables and fairy tales have been created and passed through generations. There is much more to these kinds of storytelling than meets the eye. There are many differences between the two; some differences are very obvious and distinct, while others are unclear. It is possible for fables and fairy tales to be confused with one another. One thing they have in common is that fables and fairytales may play a large role in a child’s upbringing. It is that reason fables are far better for teaching young children than fairy tales are. A short story that demonstrates a lesson and describes a critical moral is called a fable. Fables are intended for children and young adults because they often introduce animals as the main characters. The purpose of this is to make the story more appealing to the children. The main reason as to why fables are a better teaching tool than fairytales is the moral lesson hidden in the story. A story in which a moral is taught is, The Ass in the Lion’s Skin, in which a donkey is teased because of his horrendous sound and unpleasant outside appearance. The donkey comes across a beautiful and fierce lion’s skin, in which he develops a plan to pretend to be a lion. This plan is devised to trick his foes and make them believe he is something he is not. In the beginning, his plan works. When the children see him, they run scared, fearing the lion might attack them. The donkey believes that being able roar ferociously will surly frighten the children as they have frightened him. So he once again, he approaches them wanting to pay them back for their wrong doings. He opens his mouth but instead of a ferocious roar, out comes a loud bray. The sound startles the children, and they realize it is just the donkey. The boys no longer fret because they see it is only a disguise, and they are not in danger. “The boys however somehow came to know, that, if the ass had happened to be a lion in reality, he had