# Scorpion and the Frog - A Fable # Links [[fable]] # References **The Scorpion and the Frog - A Fable** | | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | | | <br>**The Scorpion and the Frog****** <br>**The Scorpion and the Frog** is a [fable](http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fable) about a [scorpion](http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scorpion) asking a [frog](http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frog) to carry him across a river. The frog is afraid of being stung during the trip, but the scorpion argues that if it stung the frog, the frog would sink and the scorpion would drown. The frog agrees and begins carrying the scorpion, but midway across the river the scorpion does indeed sting the frog, dooming them both. When asked why, the scorpion points out that this is its nature. The fable is used to illustrate the position that the behaviour of some creatures is irrepressible, no matter how they are treated and no matter what the consequences. <br>Variations commonly include a farmer, youth, turtle, or fox in place of the frog, and a snake in place of the scorpion. _The Farmer and the Viper_ is a specific variant that can be attributed to [Aesop](http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aesop). There is also a variation[1](http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Scorpion_and_the_Frog#cite_note-The_Scorpion_and_the_Fox-0)[2](http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Scorpion_and_the_Frog#cite_note-better_we_should_both_perish-1) in which the final words of the scorpion are "It is better we should both perish than that my enemy should live." <br>**Origin** <br>The origin and author are unknown. Variations of the fable appear in [West African](http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:African_folklore)[3](http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Scorpion_and_the_Frog#cite_note-Livraghi-2)[4](http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Scorpion_and_the_Frog#cite_note-Hausa-3) and [European](http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:European_folklore) folktales. The story is often identified with [Aesop's Fables](http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aesop%27s_Fables), although only variants appear therein.[5](http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Scorpion_and_the_Frog#cite_note-Aesop.27s_Fables:_The_Farmer_and_the_Viper-4)[6](http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Scorpion_and_the_Frog#cite_note-Aesop.27s_Fables:_The_Frog_and_the_Mouse-5) A study published in a German journal in 2011[7](http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Scorpion_and_the_Frog#cite_note-6) points out a connection between the genesis of the fable and the tradition of the [Panchatantra](http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panchatantra), a collection of animal fables dating back to India in the 3rd century BCE. Whereas the original [Sanskrit](http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanskrit) work and its early translations do not contain any fable resembling _The Scorpion and the Frog_, an earlier version of it, _The Scorpion and the Turtle_, is to be found as an interpolated fable in post-Islamic variants of the Panchatantra.[8](http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Scorpion_and_the_Frog#cite_note-7) The study suggests that the interpolation occurred between the 12th and 13th century in the Persian language area[9](http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Scorpion_and_the_Frog#cite_note-8) and offers a constructive frame of orientation for further research on the question of the fable's origin. <br>[↑ Jump Back A Section](http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Scorpion_and_the_Frog#section_1) <br>**References** <br>[View this page on regular Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/w/mobileRedirect.php?to=http%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FThe_Scorpion_and_the_Frog) <br>[Permanently disable mobile site](http://en.m.wikipedia.org/disable/The_Scorpion_and_the_Frog) <br>Text is available under the [Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Text_of_Creative_Commons_Attribution-ShareAlike_3.0_Unported_License); additional terms may apply. See [Terms of Use](http://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Terms_of_Use) for details. Wikipedia is a registered trademark of the [Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.](http://www.wikimediafoundation.org/), a non-profit organization. <br>Clipped on 7-September-2011, 5 : 27 PM from [http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Scorpion_and_the_Frog](http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Scorpion_and_the_Frog) | | | | |   Information provided by Jim Berger for your edification and viewing pleasure.