“The Raven and The Fox” Poem Notes: Explanation, Summary, Poetic Devices NCERT Class 6

The poem “The Raven and the Fox” by Jean de La Fontaine, is a kid’s poem to convey a message about the dangers of pride and the deceitfulness of flattery. Here you would get Notes on this poem that contain – Stanza and line wise explanation & analysis, summary, central idea, moral & message of the poem and literary devices used in the poem. So enjoy free learning here. Click here for Q & Ans of “The Raven and The Fox” Class 6 NCERT

“Mr Raven and The Fox” Poem Notes

Text of the Poem ‘The Raven and The Fox’

Mr Raven was perched upon a limb,
And Reynard the Fox looked up at him;
For the Raven held in his great big beak,
A morsel the Fox would go far to seek.

Said the Fox, in admiring tones: “My word!
Sir Raven, you are a handsome bird.
Such feathers! If you would only sing,
The birds of these woods would call you King.”

The Raven, who did not see the joke,
Forgot that his voice was just a croak.
He opened his beak, in his foolish pride–
And down fell the morsel the Fox had eyed.

“Ha-ha!” laughed the Fox. “And now you know,
Ignore sweet words that make you glow.
Pride, my friend, is rather unwise;
I’m sure this teaching is quite a surprise.”

– Jean de La Fontaine

Vocabulary:

Here we are giving some vocabulary words from the poem “The Raven and the Fox” along with their meanings:

1. Perched – Sitting or resting on something high.
   • Example: The bird was perched on the tree branch.
2. Limb – A large branch of a tree.
   • Example: The cat climbed up the limb of the tree.
3. Morsel – A small piece of food.
   • Example: She gave the dog a morsel of her sandwich.
4. Admiring – Showing respect or approval for something.
   • Example: He looked at the painting with admiring eyes.
5. Handsome – Good-looking or attractive.
   • Example: The peacock is a very handsome bird.
6. Feathers – The soft, light parts that cover a bird’s body.
   • Example: The bird’s feathers were colorful and bright.
7. Foolish – Lacking good sense or judgment.
   • Example: It was foolish to go outside without a coat in the winter.
8. Pride – A feeling of deep satisfaction from one’s achievements.
   • Example: He felt pride when he won the race.
9. Croak – A low, harsh sound made by a frog or a bird like a raven.
   • Example: The frog croaked loudly by the pond.
10. Ignore – To refuse to notice or acknowledge something.
    • Example: She tried to ignore the noise outside.
11. Glow – To shine with a soft light; to feel a warm pride or satisfaction.
    • Example: The candle glowed softly in the dark room.
12. Surprise – An unexpected event, fact, or thing.
    • Example: The birthday party was a big surprise for him.
13. Unwise – Not smart or sensible; lacking good judgment.
    • Example: It is unwise to touch a hot stove.

Summary:

The poem is about a Raven who is sitting on a tree branch with a piece of food in his beak. A clever Fox sees the Raven and wants the food. The Fox flatters the Raven by telling him how handsome he is and how he would be king of the birds if he could sing. The Raven, wanting to show off his voice, opens his beak to sing, and the food falls to the ground. The Fox grabs the food. It laughs and tells the Raven that he should be careful of sweet words and not let pride make him act foolishly. The poem teaches us to be wary of flattery and not let pride lead us to make mistakes.

Central Idea:

The central idea of the poem “The Raven and the Fox” is that we should be careful when someone flatters us because they might be trying to trick us. The Raven was proud and wanted to be praised, so he was fooled by the Fox’s sweet words and lost his food. The poem teaches us that being too proud can make us do silly things and that we should not trust everyone who says nice things about us.

Message and Moral:

The poem “The Raven and the Fox” conveys a message about the dangers of pride and the deceitfulness of flattery. Here’s the explanation of the message:

1. Pride Can Lead to Mistakes: The Raven’s pride makes him want to show off. When the Fox flatters him by praising his appearance and suggesting he could be king if he sang, the Raven’s pride leads him to open his beak and sing. This action causes him to drop the food he was holding.
2. Flattery Can Be Deceptive: The Fox uses sweet words to flatter the Raven, not because he genuinely admires him, but to trick him into losing his food. This highlights how people might use compliments to manipulate others for their own gain.
3. Be Cautious of Praise: The poem teaches that one should be wary of excessive praise and not let it lead to foolish actions. It’s important to remain humble and not let pride cloud judgment.

In short, the message is a cautionary lesson about the potential pitfalls of pride and how flattery can be used to deceive.

Moral of the Poem:

• The poem teaches that we should be careful of people who flatter (false praise) us because they might have hidden intentions.
• It also shows that pride can lead to foolish decisions.
• Foolish decisions only make us regret the loss.

Stanza-Wise Explanation

Let’s break down the poem “The Raven and the Fox” by Jean de La Fontaine, stanza by stanza, to make it easy to understand.

Stanza 1

Text:

Mr Raven was perched upon a limb,
And Reynard the Fox looked up at him;
For the Raven held in his great big beak,
A morsel the Fox would go far to seek.

Explanation:

• Mr. Raven is sitting on a tree branch (a limb).
• Reynard the Fox is looking up at Mr. Raven.
• The Raven has a piece of food in his big beak, and the Fox really wants that food.

Mr. Raven is sitting on a tree branch. Reynard the Fox is looking up at Mr. Raven. Mr. Raven has a tasty piece of food in his large beak. The Fox really wants that piece of food and would do a lot to get it.

Stanza 2

Text:

Said the Fox, in admiring tones: “My word!
Sir Raven, you are a handsome bird.
Such feathers! If you would only sing,
The birds of these woods would call you King.”

Explanation:

• The Fox talks to the Raven in a flattering way.
• He compliments the Raven by saying he is a very handsome bird with beautiful feathers.
• The Fox says if the Raven could sing, all the birds in the woods would call him their king.

The Fox speaks to the Raven in a flattering way. He tells the Raven that he is a very handsome bird. The Fox admires the Raven’s beautiful feathers. He says that if the Raven could sing, all the birds in the forest would call him their King.

Stanza 3

Text:

The Raven, who did not see the joke,
Forgot that his voice was just a croak.
He opened his beak, in his foolish pride–
And down fell the morsel the Fox had eyed.

Explanation:

• The Raven did not realize the Fox was joking or trying to trick him.
• He forgot that his voice sounds like a croak (an unpleasant sound).
• The Raven, feeling proud, opened his beak to sing.
• The piece of food fell out of his beak, and the Fox got what he wanted.

The Raven didn’t realize that the Fox was tricking him. The Raven forgot that his voice doesn’t sound nice; it just makes a harsh croaking noise. Feeling proud and wanting to show off, the Raven opened his beak to sing. When he did this, the piece of food he was holding fell out, and the Fox got what he wanted.

Stanza 4

Text:

“Ha-ha!” laughed the Fox. “And now you know, 
Ignore sweet words that make you glow. 
Pride, my friend, is rather unwise; 
I’m sure this teaching is quite a surprise.”

Explanation:

• The Fox laughs and says “Ha-ha!” because his trick worked.
• He tells the Raven that he should ignore sweet words that make him feel proud.
• The Fox teaches the Raven that pride can make you do unwise things.
• The Fox is sure that the Raven has learned an unexpected lesson.

The Fox laughs at the Raven. He tells the Raven that now he should understand not to trust flattering words. The Fox explains that being too proud can lead to mistakes. He finishes by saying that this lesson must have been a surprising one for the Raven.

Moral of the Poem: The poem teaches us that we should not let flattery or pride cloud our judgment. Sometimes, people might say nice things to us to get what they want, and we need to be careful not to be tricked by their words.

Poetic Devices Used in The Poem

Here are some poetic devices used in the poem “The Raven and the Fox”:

1. Rhyme: The poem uses a regular rhyming pattern where the end of the lines rhyme with each other, making it musical and easier to remember.
   • Example: “limb” and “him”, “beak” and “seek”.
2. Personification: Animals are given human traits. The Raven and the Fox talk and behave like humans.
   • Example: The Fox speaks to the Raven and flatters him.
3. Alliteration: The repetition of the same consonant sounds at the beginning of words close to each other.
   • Example: “Great big beak”, (/b/ sound)
   • woods would
   • now you know
4. Metaphor: Comparing two things without using “like” or “as”. Here, the Fox compares the Raven’s potential singing to being a king.
   • Example: “The birds of these woods would call you King.” (comparing the Raven to a King).
5. Irony: A contrast between expectation and reality. The Raven expects to be praised for his voice but ends up losing his food because of it. The Raven thinks he is being praised genuinely, but the Fox is actually tricking him. The raven ends up losing his food because of it (flattery).
   • Example: The Raven opens his beak to sing and loses his food, showing the opposite of what he expected.
6. Dialogue: The conversation between the Raven and the Fox helps tell the story and reveal their characters.
   • Example: The Fox’s flattering words and the Raven’s reaction.
7. Imagery: Descriptive language that creates a picture in the reader’s mind.
   • Example: “Mr. Raven was perched upon a limb” paints a visual image of the Raven sitting on a tree branch.
8. Moral: Although not a poetic device, the poem contains a moral lesson, typical of fables.
   • Example: The lesson about the dangers of pride and flattery.
9. Dialogue:
   • The conversation between characters.
   • Example: The Fox speaking to the Raven, “Sir Raven, you are a handsome bird.”