An Eagle sat high in the branches of a great Oak. She seemed very sad and drooping for an Eagle. A Kite saw her.
“Why do you look so woebegone?” asked the Kite.
“I want to get married,” replied the Eagle, “and I can’t find a mate who can provide for me as I should like.”
“Take me,” said the Kite; “I am very strong, stronger even than you!”
“Do you really think you can provide for me?” asked the Eagle eagerly.
“Why, of course,” replied the Kite. “That would be a very simple matter. I am so strong I can carry away an Ostrich in my talons as if it were a feather!”
The Eagle accepted the Kite immediately. But after the wedding, when the Kite flew away to find something to eat for his bride, all he had when he returned, was a tiny Mouse.
“Is that the Ostrich you talked about?” said the Eagle in disgust.
“To win you I would have said and promised anything,” replied the Kite.
Credits
Aesop was an ancient Greek storyteller, believed to have lived around 620–564 BCE, credited with hundreds of short moral fables that have endured for over two millennia. His fables typically feature animals whose behaviour reflects recognisable human flaws, and "The Eagle and the Kite" is a compact example of his gift for exposing vanity and deceit through everyday drama. Though likely transmitted orally before being written down, his stories remain among the most widely read short fables in the world.
