Reading Notes: More Jataka Tales, Part A
Plot Structure:
Exposition: A very powerful king plans to invade a distant and weaker kingdom. The king travels with his entire army as they trek across the countryside to reach the other land.
Rising Action: When the army stopped in a forest to rest, soldiers began distributing peas as food for their horses. The forest was also home to monkeys, and one decides to take some of the peas himself. He gathers quite a lot of peas and climbs back up into a tree to eat.
Climax: As the monkey gorges himself on peas, he drops one onto the ground below. Instead of finishing his meal and then going to get the last pea, he abandons all his peas, dropping them to go look for the runaway pea.
Falling Action: The monkey fails in his endeavor, and he realizes his foolish mistake. He grumbles that he sacrificed his whole stash in the risky attempt to find just one dropped pea.
Resolution: For some reason, the king was paying attention to this monkey, and he gleams the lesson of the monkey's foolishness: it is not worth it for the king to risk his army for the sake of gaining a tiny piece of land. He decides to give up the conquest attempt and return to his own kingdom.
Character Analysis:
Monkey: The monkey does not seem to have many strengths, but perhaps curiosity or boldness is one. No other animals seem to take advantage of the peas brought to their forest by the visiting humans. Another strength may be self-reflection, as at least he realizes his mistake after all is said and done. However, it's a little late at that point to be useful. His weakness is obvious: he is careless, and he acts before he thinks.
King: The king seems to have exactly the same traits as the monkey; he just got lucky! He too was being careless, but because of the monkey's plight, the king is able to apply his reflection to the monkey's situation and think about the future before it is too late.
Bibliography: "The Pennywise Monkey" from More Jataka Tales by Ellen C. Babbitt
Comments
Post a Comment