Critical Essay on 'The Tortoise and the Hare'

Introduction

The Tale, "The Tortoise, and the Hare" is one of the traditional oral narratives. In the past, different communities had their unique Folktales that helped in the transfer of moral lessons from generation to another. The tales belonged a specific culture and therefore it had cultural significance to the particular community. Other examples of Folktales that were important in the oral traditions include music, jokes, proverbs, and stories. The folk stories were helpful to the community because they transmit aspirations and hope to from one generation to another. Specifically, the fable 'the tortoise and the hair acted as a means of preservation and transmission of culture from one generation to another (Smith 59).

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The fable, the tortoise, and the Hare were popular among all the English speaking community in the ancient time. The fable was first told in Greek and later translated into the English language thus reaching the various parts of the globe. The stories of the hare and the tortoise embodied many cultural practices among the English speaking communities. The two animals in the tale were set to challenge each other as to who runs the fastest. In the modern society, the moral of the stories are embedded in the saying that the 'slow and steady wins the race". The fable was told in the most creative way such that nobody can confirm whether the story was a reality. At the end of the story, it is said that a huge fire consumed the forest and that all almost all the living things died. Such an ending statement shows how the story had no other characters to tell the story in other versions (Smith 60).

The folktale reflects the beliefs the Greeks and the values that were important to the generations. In literature, many scholars tried to study different tales from within their cultural contexts. The importance of studying the oral traditions from the original context was to understand the importance of such tales to a particular community. Most cultural studies show that people leaving in the ancient time valued the lives of the coming generations. As a result, each community had their own way of preserving and communicating the cultures to the future generations.

Particularly, the tale about the tortoise and the hare was of great importance to the ancient Greeks and all the English-speaking communities both in the past and in the present. The importance of the story of the tortoise and the hare in the ancient mythology was that it shows how the community views itself. Each community in the past had specific attitudes towards events. For example, in the tale, it is apparent that the Greeks discouraged pride. It is apparent from the tale that, the hare demeaned the tortoise but finally lost the race to the tortoise. It was obvious for all the animals in the jungle that the hare could run faster than the tortoise. However, with a heart full of pride, the hare dashed from the starting line but slept on the way thinking that the tortoise cannot manage the race. For this reason, therefore, it is clear that among the Greeks, pride was discouraged because it came before a fall.

The tale also conveys the notions of the Greeks concerning ordinary events in the daily life. The ancients had a notion that justice is a right of everyone irrespective of the physical strength and tale. In the tale, it is clear to all readers that the hare is a quick runner. However, the slow but steady speed of the tortoise earned him a win. In just case, the tortoise was perceived slow and unable to defeat the hare in the race. However, the tortoise deserved the victory after winning the race in the most genuine way. In such cases, the Greek leaders wished to teach all the generations regarding the importance of justice and respect for the individual efforts however small it may seem.

The tale also explains the importance of rights and specify the social obligations of the leaders to the people they lead. The leaders have a moral responsibility to serve the people and treat them equally important. There is the essence of equality in the community that the leaders had to lead as the good models. The citizens had to learn to protect the rights of their fellow citizens irrespective of the social status in the community. The tortoise represents the weak in the community that ordinary minds believed they have no rights in the society. The hare was confident that the race was simple and that he would definitely win. However, with a heart full of pride the Hare ran and after some time he rested under the shade and finally slept.

The Greeks also passed lessons about effects of laziness, selfishness, and greed using the tale. In the story, it is apparent that the vices such as greed and laziness are depicted negatively in the society. The offending actors in the Greek fables were depicted as having a terrible ending in their lives. The tortoise had to try to challenge the Hare despite knowing that he did not have speed. It appears in other versions of the story that some characters in the story believed that the tortoise had a hard shell and therefore had high chances of winning the race. In such cases, the story communicates the diverse perception of the people of Greeks concerning success. In this case, success does not come through physical strength but intelligence and persistence. In the story of the tortoise and the hare, the hare is depicted as stupid, and disrespect and therefore perished because of the uncontrolled behavior (O'CONNELL et al., 162).

The tale had a role to uphold certain values in the society. For example, the ancient Greeks were for the idea of teaching the people on the importance of honesty in all the spheres of life. The society seemed to embrace goodness and unity in the society. For example, the tale and the moral lesson were told to the entire Greek speaker in the land. Similar lessons contained in the tales were conveyed to all the English speakers in the Greek land. The heroes and the heroes of the folktales were futuristic and people of the common good in the society. The heroes and the heroes of the folktales in the ancient Greeks used the tales to prevail offer their menace.

Most of the folktales in the ancient Greeks had animals as the main characters that represent human beings. The animals were set strategically to convey the behaviors and the characters of the people. The stories poke fun and depict awkward situations that truly show the action of human life in reality (O'CONNELL et al., 164).

The use of animals as the characters in the tale was an important way to avoid bias in the community. The heroes of folk tales were creative and would critic some bad behavior indirectly. For example, the use of the animals as the characters was one way to avoid personalizing issues and to avoid attacking some specific persons in the community. The audience had their time to personalize the moral lessons of the story without viewing the heroes and the heroes of the folk's tale as bias.

The tale had animal imagery that made it possible for the people and young children to understand the relevance of the story and due to the use simple actions to characterize the animals in the story. After reading the folktale, it is clear that the storyteller and the audience had a personal way of interacting (O'CONNELL et al., 162). The use of recitals, facial expressions, and captivating words was to ensure that the audience was attentive and participate fully in the tale. Attentions were important because it was an assurance for the storytellers that the moral lessons of the story reach everyone.

Generally, the heroes and the heroines of the oral narratives were influential because they were equipped with skills of a narrative. Some of the skills that helped the authors of oral literature to emphasize some important themes were the mastery of vocal tones, bodily gesture, and miming. In the tale, there some sets of important ideas that audiences had to remember for a long time because they were beneficial in the daily life.

The use of folklore in the modern society is helpful in teaching people and young children on the important issues in the society. The society of today holds some cultural practices important and therefore passes the knowledge from one generation to another. The importance of folklore in the modern society is educating children, giving them some sense of wellbeing and motivating (Frank et al., 19). In the story of the tortoise and the hare, children perceive tortoise as less capable in the race with the hare. However, the fact that the tortoise won in the story shows how it is important to embrace humility and self-trust. The lesson from the folktale conveys big lessons to the children on the value of humility and hard work.

Sometimes it is the concern of many researchers as to why heroes and heroes use odd animals to beat bigger and stronger animals. In this case, mentally, and physically, the children can learn that anyone can attain great things in the community irrespective of the physical appearance. The oral narratives in the modern society depict animals behaving nice and sober on issues affecting the community. For example, in some narratives, some animal characters are portrait discussing issues and sharing ideas on how to approach some things in their lives. The fact the animals are discussing issues shows the importance of democracy and the importance of unity and mutual agreement on societal issues. The people in the modern society began demeaning the implication of folktales in the lives of the people in the modern society. To some people, the folk's songs, and stories belong to the infants and old people. It is important to know that the stories discuss historical issues that may affect everybody in the society and the community at large (Frank et al., 23).

The relevance of the story of the Hare and the tortoise during the ancient time is it has its relevance in the modern world. In the books of oral literature available online and in the libraries, the authors communicate the same message to the modern readers. It is clear that the hare would ridicule the tortoise because of his slow movements in most situations (Davidescu et al., 163). The intensive arrogance provoked the tortoise to challenge the hare in the race. The story teaches the people in the modern society on the value of humility and love for their weak friends. The story is relevant in the academic lives of the children because of the need for diligence and respect for their friends.

The hare had the confidence of winning but in the mid of the journey, he relaxed because of pride. In the old Greek, the elders believed that some people had some natural abilities and stronger than others. However, the natural talents that elders believed would make other members of the society great were ruined by laziness and pride. The instructors in the modern society use fables to discourage bullying in schools. The students can simply learn from the tale the effects of pride in various endeavors of their lives. The character of the hare in the fable is overemphasized because he died because of false confidence and fooling mentality. The life of the hare is used in the modern society to symbolize the life proud people who regret because of poor decisions on their lives (Davidescu et al., 164).

The heroes of oral literature in the modern society use folklore to preserve the culture and to pass it to the children in the future. The fables have been used in most cases as motivation in schools and workplaces. For example, the school environment consists of students who learn fast and others who learn slowly. For the slow learners, the life of the tortoise is important to them because it teaches them to crawl slowly but steadily. The story of the hare encourages sobriety, perseverance, and zeal that help on to prevail.

Some communi...