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Leo et Socii

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The story of The Lion and His Companions is a poem from a medieval Romulus (rhymed). It is written in the Goliardic meter. You can find this poem, Romulus 1.7, along with other fables from the Romulus collections, at the aesopica.net website. The Perry number for this fable is Perry 339. This Latin fable is the basis for the proverbial saying "the lion's share." Many people think the lion's share refers to a big part, or the biggest part - but as you will learn in this story, it actually refers to the whole thing... taken by force! You can see a 1501 woodcut illustration for this fable at the University of Mannheim website. You can find a translation of a different version of this fable (based on the Latin poet Phaedrus) in Aesop's Fables, by Laura Gibbs (Oxford University Press, 2003).

   Use this Study Guide to organize your learning activities.

Here is the poem (click "play" icon for brief audio sample):

Vacca, Caper et Ovis     dudum sociari
Cum Leone ceperant     et simul venari.
Leo cervum prendidit,     quem iussit frustrari
Quattuor in partes et partem cuique parari.

Sed, dum ferae debiles     non possint parare
Partes sibi traditas,     Leo sullevare
Cepit omnes pariter,     et sic vendicare
Particulam primam, reliquas tres sic recitare:

"Mihi iure virium     secunda donetur;
Quia plus cucurreram     tertia debetur;
Si quis ad particulam     quartam iudicetur,
Hic mihi mortalis inimicus semper habetur."

Moralitas.
Tunc trementes bestiae    totas dimiserunt
Leoni particulas,    et sic erraverunt,
Quando fortiori se     socios fecerunt.
Temporibus nostris plures hac fraude ruerunt.

The following version puts the words in a more prose-like order so that it will be easier for you to read:

Vacca, Caper et Ovis dudum ceperant sociari et simul venari cum Leone.	sociari... venari: complementary infinitives with ceperant
Leo cervum prendidit, quem iussit frustrari in quattuor partes et cuique partem parari.	quem: relative pronoun, antecedent is cervum frustrari...parari: complementary infinitives with iussit
Sed, dum ferae debiles non possint parare partes sibi traditas,	possint: subjunctive with dum parare: complementary infinitive with possint
Leo cepit sullevare omnes pariter, et vendicare sic particulam primam, et recitare sic reliquas tres:	sullevare...vendicare...recitare: complementary infinitives with cepit (sullevare = sublevare) recitare: "to list, enumerate"
Secunda donetur mihi iure virium;	donetur: jussive subjunctive
tertia debetur quia plus cucurreram;
si quis iudicetur, ad particulam quartam, hic semper habetur mihi mortalis inimicus .	si quis = si aliquis iudicetur: subjunctive in conditional statement
Moralitas. Tunc trementes bestiae totas particulas dimiserunt Leoni,	totas...particulas: split phrase
et sic erraverunt, quando se socios fecerunt fortiori.
Temporibus nostris plures hac fraude ruerunt.