On a fable about the hawk as a strongman

Abstract

n what is generally agreed to be the earliest attestation of a fable in Greek literature, we read about a hawk that has just captured another bird. The fable is embedded in the Hesiodic Works and Days, lines 202–212, where the captor is boastfully saying to his captive that he has the power to do anything with his prey. Since the hawk is a predatory bird, we can already guess what he will say next in the story. And he does say it: I have the power to devour you. In the illustration for this posting, I show a logical ending for such a story: we see a hawk, with beak already dripping with blood, as he starts feasting on a bird he has just caught. In terms of the fable, as I will argue, the hawk is like a predatory strongman, feasting on the lives of his fellow humans—since he has power over them. But there is more to the story, as I hope to show.