The Boy Who Cried Wolf

E1026546

"The Boy Who Cried Wolf" is a classic moral tale about a shepherd boy who repeatedly lies about a wolf attack, only to be ignored when the danger finally becomes real.

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Statements (49)

Predicate Object
instanceOf Aesop's fable
cautionary tale
moral tale
short story
adaptedAs animated cartoons
children's picture books
stage plays
author Aesop NERFINISHED
centralTheme consequences of lying
credibility
honesty
trust
conflictType man versus nature
man versus society
countryOfOrigin Greek Antiquity
surface form: Ancient Greece
culturalImpact inspired the expression "to cry wolf"
didacticPurpose to illustrate the loss of trust caused by repeated deception
to teach children not to lie
educationalUse reading comprehension exercises
values education in schools
genre fable
folklore
hasIdiomDerived cry wolf
hasMotiveOfProtagonist boredom
desire for attention
literaryTradition oral tradition
mainAntagonist wolf
mainCharacter shepherd boy
moral Liars are not believed even when they tell the truth
moralCategory ethics of truth-telling
moralFocus reliability of speech
moralLessonAudience children and adults
narrativePerspective third-person narration
narrativeStructure repetition of false alarms followed by real danger
originalLanguage Ancient Greek
partOf Aesop's Fables NERFINISHED
plotSummary A shepherd boy repeatedly tricks villagers by falsely crying that a wolf is attacking his flock
When a real wolf appears and the boy calls for help, the villagers ignore him and the flock is attacked
setting pasture
village
targetAudience children
teachesAbout community trust
importance of reputation
social consequences of dishonesty
timePeriodOfOrigin classical antiquity
traditionalAttribution Aesop NERFINISHED
usedAs idiom for warning that is ignored because of past false alarms
usedIn character education programs
moral education

Referenced by (1)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Aesop's fables hasNotableFable The Boy Who Cried Wolf
subject surface form: Aesop's Fables