Perry's Index to the Aesopica
Fables exist in many versions; here is one version in English:
THE DOG, THE SOW AND APHRODITE
A sow and a dog were viciously arguing with one another. The sow, for her part,
swore by Aphrodite that she would tear the dog to pieces with her teeth. The
dog replied ironically, 'Yes indeed, you do well to swear by Aphrodite! It's
clear just how much she loves you, since she absolutely forbids anyone who has
tasted your filthy flesh to enter her temple.' The sow retorted, 'This is even
more evidence of the goddess's love for me, since she turns away anyone who
has slain or mistreated me in any way. As for you, you just smell bad, dead
or alive!'
This story shows how a discerning speaker can deftly turn the insults of
his enemies into compliments. |
 Source:
Aesop's Fables. A new translation by Laura
Gibbs.
Oxford University Press (World's Classics): Oxford, 2002.
NOTE: New
cover, with new ISBN, published in 2008; contents of book unchanged.
Perry 222: Gibbs (Oxford) 197 [English]
Perry 222: L'Estrange 151 [English]
Perry 222: Chambry 329 [Greek]
You can find a compilation of Perry's index to the Aesopica in the gigantic appendix to his
edition of Babrius and Phaedrus for the Loeb Classical Library
(Harvard University Press: Cambridge, 1965). This book is an absolute must for anyone interested
in the Aesopic fable tradition. Invaluable.
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