Vierundsiebzig Fabeln
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Authors
Wohlmuth, Alois
Issue Date
1917
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Book, Whole
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Abstract
Seven years ago I found Wohlmuth's Hundertundeine Fabel und asked if it was an expansion of his earlier Vierundsiebzig Fabeln, described as Bodemann #398. Now I am lucky enough to have that earlier book, of which Hundertundeine Fabel is indeed an expansion. This book has a different publisher and printer but uses the same cover illustration as the later volume, only here on cream colored rather than green cloth. Bodemann's describes that cover this way: aesopähnliche Dichterfigur in humoristisch-antikisierender Aufmachung mit erhobenem Zeigefinger in Kornfeld. Bodemann incorrectly lists Hundertundeine Fabel as published in 1915. Let me repeat and expand remarks I made there about the later book. I had known a little bit about Wohlmuth's work from encountering it in the 1961 Vogel und Fisch: Ein Buch Fabeln. I enjoy these poems and sketches. These poems are more than fable-like. The order of the poems is changed. Hilferuf, there on 3, is here on 24. Frogs are aware of the approaching snakes and make a big noise. Stork hears the frogs' cries, comes down, eats the snakes and then eats the frogs too! Dankbarkeit (45 there, 43 here) is typical fable stuff. A human frees an insect caught in a spider's web. The latter notices having lost some blood to the spider, thinks through the issue, and realizes that there is a great source close at hand: her savior! Pfeffer (there 71, here 69) relates the difficulty Ebrahim has getting his ass to continue traveling. He gets the advice: Put pepper in his buttocks. He dismounts and does that. The ass then runs so fast that Ebrahim cannot catch him. So he tries the same on himself and it works! His wife wonders what is up, but Ebrahim cannot stop. He recommends that she too pepper her buttocks and she will follow them like lightning. Gulbransson's two sketches for this fable are particularly good. Vom Hamster (there 107, here 92) relates the death of a hamster who had saved up food that he never enjoyed. Verschwender ist, wer nicht geniesst! He is a waster who does not enjoy! Neither book has the promised dust-jacket. The T of C, there at the end, is here at the beginning.
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Publisher
Georg Müller
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Identifier
10227 (Access ID)