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The Fox and the Goat – 掉在井里的狐狸和公山羊

May 28, 2016 by David & Nicole Leave a Comment

downloadHowdy people! How ya doing? I would rate today's post as an advanced Chinese reading exercise which requires a relatively high level of Chinese vocabulary. But don't be scared. That's what I'm here for, to hold your hands and guide you through it. By me firstly going through the difficult words and clearing those up, I'm confident you will then be able to read through this article to the end.

Remember, every language starts from vocabulary. That's why reading and writing practice are the fundamental building blocks of literacy. So in your spare time I recommend taking some of these new words, copying and pasting into Arch Chinese dictionary and seeing how to write the characters and imitate the stroke order and try writing it at least ten times yourself. The dictionary also breaks down the characters into their constituent components and often give other useful information such as character etymology. Remember, finding your own way to remember as much vocabulary as you can and applying them to daily communication are fundamental.

By the way, is it just me or do all of Aesop's Fables end like anti-happily-ever-after? What's with that right?

Anyway let's dive in.

Key Vocabulary:

狐狸(hú lí) - fox

失足(shī zú) - if you directly translate it into English it means "lose + feet" but in Chinese it means fall down or slip.

挣扎(zhēng zhá) - struggle

口渴(kǒu kě) - thirsty

极(jí) - means extreme (extremely)

镇静(zhèn jìng) - calm down

赞美(zàn měi) - praise

痛饮(tòng yǐn) - 痛 means hurt 饮 means drink, but here it doesn't mean that you drink till you feel painful. It means you drink till you are satisfied

不假思索(bù jiǎ sī suǒ)- without hesitation

共商(gòng shāng) - means discuss together, you can actually expand this words to 共同together and 商量 discuss

狡猾(jiǎo huá) - crafty

指责(zhǐ zé) - blame

Chinese Text:

掉在井里的狐狸和公山羊

一只狐狸失足掉到了井里,不论他如何挣扎仍找不到办法爬上去,只好呆在那里。公山羊觉得口渴极了,来到这井边,看见狐狸在井下,便问他井水好不好喝?狐狸觉得机会来了,心中暗喜,马上镇静下来,极力赞美井水好喝,说这水是天下第一泉,清甜爽口,并劝山羊赶快下来,与他痛饮。

一心只想喝水信以为真的山羊,便不假思索地跳了下去,当他咕咚咕咚痛饮完后,突然意识到自己的窘境,自己现在被困在井下。它不得不与狐狸一起共商上井的办法。狐狸提出了一个建议说:"你用前脚扒在井墙上,再把头低下,我从你后背跳上井去,再拉你上来,我们就都得救了。"

公山羊同意了他的提议,让狐狸跳到他背上。狐狸从山羊角上用力一跳,跳出了井口。当狐狸上去以后,它马上准备独自逃离。公山羊指责狐狸不信守诺言。狐狸回过头对公山羊说:"愚蠢的朋友,如果您有像您胡须那样多的头脑,你就不至于在没看清出口之前就盲目地跳下去。"

这故事说明,聪明的人应当事先考虑清楚事情的结果,然后才去做。换句话所,跳之前要先看清。 

English Translation:

(Show...)
The Fox (who fell into a well) and the Goat

A Fox slipped and fell into a deep well and could find no means of climbing up [i.e. no means of escape] no matter how hard he struggled, so was forced to just stay there. A male Goat, feeling thirsty, came to the same well, and seeing the Fox underground, asked if the water was good. Sensing his opportunity, the Fox swiftly adopted a calm and cool demeanour, all the while secretly smiling in his heart [basically just acting cool as though he was fine] and began to heap lavish praise on the well water, saying it was fresh and sweet and tasty beyond measure, and he encouraged the male Goat to come down and drink together with him to their heart's content.

The Goat, mindful only of his thirst took what the Fox said to be true, thoughtlessly jumped down. After he finished drinking his fill, he suddenly realised his predicament - that he was trapped underground now. So he had no choice but to work together with the Fox to come up with a plan to escape together. The Fox suggested a scheme for their mutual escape. "If you will place your forefeet upon the wall and bend your head, I will run up your back and escape, and then I'll help you out once I'm up. This way we will both be saved," said the Fox.

The Goat agreed to this plan and let the Fox jump on his back to climb out. Steadying himself with the Goat's horns, he safely reached the mouth of the well. As soon as he got up, he prepared to escape alone. When the Goat called him out for breaking his promise, he turned around and cried out, "You foolish old fellow! If you had as many brains in your head as you have hairs in your beard, you would never have gone down blindly before you had inspected the way up, nor have exposed yourself to dangers from which you had no means of escape."

The moral of the story is: A wise person ought to think clearly and consider the outcome before diving straight into action. In other words, look before you leap.

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Filed Under: Advanced Reading Practice Tagged With: Aesop's Fables

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