Dumdristigt eller modigt?

Fairy's Tightrope, 1910

Arthur Rackham

Den lilla älvan är varken dumdristig eller modig — hon har både skyddsnät och vingar.
Men när människor ger sig till att spankulera på lina över Niagara Fallen, kan jag inte låta bli att undra vad de försöker bevisa för sig själv och omvärlden.

Musmys

Illustration av Arthur Rackham

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Vill du läsa hela den sorgliga historien om "Titty Mouse and Tatty Mouse" kan du göra det här.

Musmys

Aesop's fables (1912)

A new translation by V. S. Vernon Jones

With an introduction by G. K. Chesterton
And illustrations by Arthur Rackham

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A Town Mouse and a Country Mouse were acquaintances, and the Country Mouse one day invited his friend to come and see him at his home in the fields. The Town Mouse came, and they sat down to a dinner of barleycorns and roots, the latter of which had a distinctly earthy flavour. The fare was not much to the taste of the guest, and presently he broke out with "My poor dear friend, you live here no better than the ants. Now, you should just see how I fare! My larder is a regular horn of plenty. You must come and stay with me, and I promise you you shall live on the fat of the land." So when he returned to town he took the Country Mouse with him, and showed him into a larder containing flour and oatmeal and figs and honey and dates. The Country Mouse had never seen anything like it, and sat down to enjoy the luxuries his friend provided: but before they had well begun, the door of the larder opened and some one came in. The two Mice scampered off and hid themselves in a narrow and exceedingly uncomfortable hole. Presently, when all was quiet, they ventured out again; but some one else came in, and off they scuttled again. This was too much for the visitor. "Good-bye," said he, "I'm off. You live in the lap of luxury, I can see, but you are surrounded by dangers; whereas at home I can enjoy my simple dinner of roots and corn in peace."
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Som bekant finns det möss överallt — Æsops fabler inte undantagen. Det är roligt att jämföra olika illustratörers tolkningar. I somras visade jag några av de olika illustrationerna till Stevensons "A Child's Garden of Verses". Det påminner mig om när jag berättat sagor för ungar och bett dem illustrera vad de hört — så olika de tänker sig det hela. Utom en del ungar som alltid ritar detsamma...
Och så här tänker sig Milo Winter samma fabel:

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The Æsop for Children, 1919
With pictures by Milo Winter
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Och slutligen den äldsta version:

Aesop's Fables - A New Revised Version From Original Sources, 1884
Illustrator: Harrison Weir, John Tenniel and Ernest Griest

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