A Wolf had been hurt in a fight with a Bear. He was unable to move and could not satisfy his hunger and thirst. A Sheep passed by near his hiding place, and the Wolf called to him.
“Please fetch me a drink of water,” he begged, “that might give me strength enough so I can get me some solid food.”
“Solid food!” said the Sheep. “That means me, I suppose. If I should bring you a drink, it would only serve to wash me down your throat. Don’t talk to me about a drink!”
Credits
Aesop was an ancient Greek storyteller, believed to have lived around 620–564 BCE, whose fables have been retold across cultures for over two millennia. This fable is among the shorter entries in the Aesopic tradition, yet it distills a complete moral exchange — predator, prey, and a deflection sharp enough to double as a punchline — into fewer than a hundred words.
