Ancient Wisdom Atlas

Motif

envious imitator fails to reproduce a wonder

envious_imitator_fails_to_reproduce_a_wonder

A motif of the Pride, Hubris, and Downfall family. Every row below is a tagged passage; each rests on a quote in its source text.

1 occurrences

1 traditions


japanese

  • Japanese Fairy Tales THE GOBLIN OF ADACHIGAHARA / THE SAGACIOUS MONKEY AND THE BOAR / THE HAPPY HUNTER AND THE SKILLFUL FISHER / THE STORY OF THE OLD MAN WHO MADE WITHERED TREES TO FLOWER; lines 4747-4816 confidence: high

    The wicked neighbor hears of the good old man’s fortune, becomes envious, recalls earlier failures, decides to imitate ash-sprinkling, and gathers ashes from the fireplace where the wonderful mortar had burned.

    The neighbor envies the good old man, imitates his ash-sprinkling, falsely claims superior identity, and fails to produce flowers or buds.

    read in the book