Perry's Index to the Aesopica
Fables exist in many versions; here is one version in English:
ORPHEUS AND THE DOGS
The animals were Orpheus' companions, and while they enjoyed and admired his
music, they never attempted to imitate it. But a few of the dogs, those shameless
and meddlesome creatures, set out to make some music of their own. They straightaway
went off by themselves to practice, changing themselves into human form as they
continued their musical pursuits. This is where lyre players come from, and
even today they cannot completely overcome their inborn nature. As a result,
they preserve the teachings of Orpheus, but only to a small degree; for the
most part it is the canine music that endures. |
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 448: Gibbs (Oxford) 503 [English]
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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