The Hare and the Hound by Aesop for ESL students with a video, list of vocabulary and related proverbs to improve your English naturally through interesting and meaningful short stories and fables.
The Hare and the Hound is now in the public domain available on Gutenberg Project.
Video of the Hare and the Hound
The Hare and the Hound
A hound started a hare from her form, and pursued her for some distance; but as she gradually gained upon him, he gave up the chase.
A rustic who had seen the race met the hound as he was returning, and taunted him with his defeat. “The little one was too much for you,” said he.
“Ah, well,” said the hound, “don’t forget it’s one thing to be running for your dinner, but quite another to be running for your life.”
English proverbs from the short story
It’s one thing to run for a meal, another for your life.
This captures the essence of the hound’s response to the goatherd.
Desperation fuels greater speed.
This focuses on the hare’s motivation to survive.
Vocabulary in real context
- hound: a type of dog bred for hunting
- hare: a fast-running mammal like a rabbit with large hind legs
- pursue: to follow and chase someone or something
- rustic (Noun): someone who lives in the country, e.g. a shepherd or goatherd
- taunt: to mock, tease, insult, ridicule someone
- desperation: recklessness brought on by great urgency and anxiety
Questions for discussion
- Why did the hound give up chasing the hare, even though the hare is much smaller?
- If the hound knew the hare was so fast, how could it have been more successful in catching it?
- Can you think of another situation where someone might be more motivated than another, even if they seem less capable?
In this story, the hare was running for its life. Despite being smaller, it had to save its life. The hound’s motivation was minor in comparison to the hare’s.
You got the main ide of the short story correctly. The level of intensity between obligation and necessity is different. In fact, survival is the strongest instinct in all animals.
Please respond to one of the questions in the discussion section of the post.