Donkey Business: A Lesson in Ignoring Public Opinion

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Ron Reeds brings to life Aesop's timeless fable "The Man, the Boy, and the Donkey," exploring how trying to please everyone leads to pleasing no one. The story follows a father and son's journey to market with their donkey, where their attempts to accommodate everyone's criticism lead to disaster.

• A man and his son initially walk alongside their donkey to market
• A countryman criticizes them for not riding the animal
• When the boy rides, they're criticized for making the father walk
• When the father rides, women shame him for making his son trudge along
• When both ride, townspeople accuse them of overloading the donkey
• Their final solution—carrying the tied-up donkey—ends in tragedy
• The fable concludes with the moral: "Please all and you will please none"

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:01):
Hello, are you tired?
You will be.
This is Ron Reeds.
Today I'm going to be reading aseries of fables from Aesop.

(00:24):
The first fable is the man, theboy and the donkey.
A man and his son were oncegoing with their donkey to the
market.

(00:44):
As they were walking along byits side, a countryman passed
them and said you fools, what isa donkey for but to ride upon?
So the man put the boy on thedonkey and they went on their

(01:05):
way.
But soon they passed a group ofmen, one of whom said See that
lazy youngster, he lets hisfather walk while he rides.
So the man ordered his boy offand got on himself.
So the man ordered his boy offand got on himself.

(01:26):
But they hadn't gone far whenthey passed two women, one of
whom said to the other Shame onthat lazy lout to let his poor
little son trudge along.
Well, the man didn't know whatto do, but at last he took his

(01:47):
boy up before him on the donkey.
By this time they had come tothe town and the passerby began
to jeer and point at them.
The man stopped and asked whatthey were scoffing at.
The men said Aren't you ashamedof yourself for overloading

(02:10):
that poor donkey of yours, youand your hulking son.
The man and the boy, got offand tried to think what to do.
They thought and they thoughttill, at last, they cut down a
pole, tied the donkey's feet toit and raised the pole and the

(02:40):
donkey to their shoulders.
They went along amid thelaughter of all who met them
till they came to the marketbridge when the donkey, getting
one of his feet loose, kickedout and caused the boy to drop
his end of the pole.
In the struggle, the donkeyfell over the bridge and his
four feet being tied together,he was drowned.

(03:02):
That'll teach you, said an oldwoman who had followed them.
Please all and you will pleasenone.
This has been a fable fromAesop the man, the boy and the

(03:26):
donkey.
Please give us a five-starrating, a good review, and share
Ron Reads with someone you knowwho is in desperate need.
Thank you.