Talk:The Gruffalo

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[edit] Chinese fable

Someone added that The Gruffalo was based on a chinese fable, but didn't provide a source to back up that claim. I can't find any evidence to support it either. Apparently Donaldson's book The Wonderful Smells was based on a chinese fable (ref) but there's no indication that The Gruffalo was too. -- Finlay McWalter | Talk 20:30, 13 September 2006 (UTC)

Thanks to the anon for the information below. Now look here:

"The Gruffalo ... began as a contemporary version of an Eastern folk tale about a child who cons a jungle tiger into submission by the cunning expedient of having it follow in her footsteps. ... 'I intended the book to be about a tiger, but I just couldn't get anything to rhyme with "tiger".' "

This is a British newspaper - ought to do as a reliable source. And there is a FAQ on her own website, here:

"The book was going to be about a tiger but I couldn’t get anything to rhyme with “tiger”." -- ALoan (Talk) 16:14, 1 March 2007 (UTC)

[edit] more on Chinese fable

I love "The Gruffalo" for the rhymes but recognize the Chinese fable the first time I read it. Most Chinese will recognize the fable "The Fox and the Tiger" (or literally -- "The fox pretending to take on the ferociousness of the tiger" story) because we all read it in our school's textbooks before the age of 6 or 7. Please see the following two sources with their English translations, one from www.hanyu.com.cn, another from http://www2.epochtimes.com/gb/csc67_1.htm. I don't know how far back these stories appeared in Chinese books but it must have been at least a few decades, as I am 50 now and I read it in my Chinese school books when I was 6.

(source: hanyu.com.cn)

狐假虎威 一次，一只老虎抓住了一只狐狸，便要吃它。那狡猾的狐狸抗议说："你怎么可以吃我！我是天帝派来到森林里来做兽中之王的。你如果不信，可以跟着我走，看哪有一只野兽不怕我！" 老虎要证实它的话，就同意了它的建议。 狐狸走在前面，老虎紧紧的跟在后面。森林里的兔子,鹿儿等野兽，看见老虎来了，一个个都躲开了。 老虎看了以为那些野兽真的是怕狐狸而逃的，也就不敢吃狐狸了。 "狐假虎威"这个成语就是由这个故事而来，形容那些依仗别人势力欺负他人的人。

Fox assuming tiger's ferocity A tiger once caught a fox and desired to make a meal of it. The cunning fox immediately made a protest saying: "How can you take me as your food? You must know that I am sent by God to this forest to be the king of all the beasts herein. If you don't believe what I say, you may follow me and see that every beast, without any exception, will fear me." In order to prove the truth of the fox's statement, the tiger agreed to the fox's [wrongly translated as "farmer" in the webpage] proposal. The fox went ahead, and the tiger followed closely. All the wild beasts in the forest, such as hares, deer, etc., on seeing the tiger coming, went away to hide themselves one by one. The tiger thought that these beasts, running away to hide themselves were really afraid of the fox. Therefore, he didn't dare to eat the fox. The idiom "fox assuming tiger's ferocity" comes from the story above, illustrating those who tease people by others' force.

source: http://www2.epochtimes.com/gb/csc67_1.htm

寓言故事中英文版---狐假虎威 老虎在森林四处觅食，刚好抓住了狐狸。 狐狸恳求老虎饶它一命，并说：「您不能吃我，我是天帝派来做百兽之王的。您如果吃了我，就是违抗天帝的命令。」 老虎放开狐狸，不大信服地望著它。 狐狸继续说：「您如果不相信，就请跟我到森林里去，看看百兽是否一见到我就逃跑。」 老虎想了会，就跟著狐狸进入森林。果然，百兽一见到它们，都惊慌地逃跑了。

The Fox That Flaunted The Tiger's Terror The tiger was scouring the forest for prey when he captured the fox. The fox pleaded for his life. "You can't eat me," he told the tiger. "I am sent by the Emperor of Heavens to be the king of all beasts. If you gobble me up, you are defying His Majesty's will." The tiger let go of the fox and looked suspiciously at him. "If you don't believe me, follow me into the forest and see for yourself," continued the fox. "Watch how the animals scamper off at the mere sight of me!" The tiger thought for a moment, then he followed the fox into the forest. Indeed, as soon as the animals caught sight of them, they all trembled and ran away fearfully. 转自：《□仔寓言网》

The author is not unfamiliar with Chinese stories, as she has written a story with a Chinese setting and Chinese characters ("The Magic Paintbrush"). I am not sure if it is based on a Chinese story, or if it is original. I enjoy that book too, and wish the author will comment on whether or not The Gruffalo is inspired by the Chinese fable. It is interesting to note that she had the tiger in mind when she wrote the story, but could not find the rhymes for "tiger", and invented the Gruffalo as a result (see the interview collected in the DVD version of the theatre production of "The Gruffalo"). I wonder if she had the Chinese fable of "The tiger and the fox" in mind then. 61.238.96.18 15:09, 1 March 2007 (UTC) S Chan.

It is interesting that the author used the word "retold". Wonder what the award committees think of this. To be fair, however, the Gruffalo added a first half of the story to the Chinese fable version, and the additions of the body parts (such as prickles and warts), and the rhymes, are original.

Foxtigerfox 16:35, 1 March 2007 (UTC) foxtiger

[edit] Spoiler

I reckon we do need a spolier warning! OK so it's a very short kids book but it is a charming one. It would be a shame to spoil it for parents, even if not many kids aged two tto five will be using Wikipedia! Jules1975 14:58, 6 February 2007 (UTC)