The monkey and the lion

What is "The Monkey and the Lion" about?

The fable "The Monkey and the Lion" is about a lion who is king and who has a broken leg. His personal physician cannot do anything about the break and so the king can only walk limping and hobbling. He has a court poet, a monkey, who comes to him one day and also limps. The king accuses the poet of making fun of him. The latter explains to him that it is his duty to hobble as well, since he is a patriot and "loyal servant". This makes the lion angry and he breaks the monkey's leg on the grounds that he is limping can when he's injured himself, but shouldn't hobble to imitate him and himself ingratiate yourself. The last sentence of the fable reads "Anyone who limps with his prince today will murder in his honor tomorrow" and is particularly important for them interpretation the fable.

The interpretation of the fable

• The fable contains two protagonists who couldn't be more different: the proud lion and the monkey, who is considered rather stupid. While the former, as king of the beasts, naturally does not emulate anyone, the latter believes that he is acting particularly wisely by doing just that. In order to adapt to its ruler, the monkey imitates his ailments and thinks that this can ingratiate himself.
• The motive behind this action is well known and is already hidden in a rebuke that many children can often hear: "When xxx jumps off the bridge, do you do that too? "Basically, then, the point is that you shouldn't imitate stupid things that others do - especially not when they are about rulers acts.
• The essential point is that one should not blindly follow a ruler, the interpretation of this text allows a political interpretation. Especially the last sentence "Whoever limps today with his prince,
  will kill tomorrow in his honor "allows conclusions to be drawn about political rulers, their" entourage "and politically motivated murders.