The latest fable is an original, and also pleasingly short. Nor was it inspired by a picture, or even by real life, although I have often disturbed hares hunkered down in the middle of woods as the hunting dog does in the tale. If you’d like to read the fable before proceed with these comments, […]

When is a fable not a fable? — When it doesn’t have a clear moral, or does not appear to be constructed as if it had a such a moral. How is the moral constructed? — There are numerous ways. The protagonists can get punished for an act of presumption, or for their vanity and […]

Sometimes we choose not to see something. We overlook it. This new version of ‘A Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing‘ dramatises that choice, brings its unconscious processes into the light. The wolf’s disguise is easy to see through, casual, enough to fool the sheep, but not their guardian. The shepherd instantly recognizes the threat, but through […]

My latest fable, ‘The Frog and the Flowers,’ was inspired by this painting by Japanese artist, Kitagawa Utamaro. What is going on in this strange image? I don’t know for certain. The plant, I think, is a bonsai, a miniature tree planted in a container. Here the container seems to be the mouth of a […]

This illustration in the traditional Chinese ‘ink wash’ style* inspired the following fable: ~~~ A butterfly saw a frog squatting on a rock. “I wonder how long its tongue might be,” the butterfly asked itself. “This long,” answered the frog, as it grabbed the butterfly and swallowed it whole. ~~~ These two creatures could be […]