The Boasting Traveller

A Man who had travelled in foreign lands, boasted very much, on returning to his own country, of the many wonderful and heroic things he had done in the different places he had visited. Among other things, he said that when he was at Rhodes he had leaped to such a distance that no man of his day could leap anywhere near him—and as to that, there were in Rhodes many persons who saw him do it, and whom he could call as witnesses. One of the bystanders interrupting him, said, "Now, my good man, if this be all true there is no need of witnesses. Suppose this to be Rhodes; and now for your leap."

From The Boasting Traveller by Aesop, translated by George Fyler Townsend (1867). Public domain.

Check your understanding

1. What is the primary logical flaw the bystander exposes in the traveller's argument?

The traveller cannot prove he actually visited Rhodes.The witnesses in Rhodes are unavailable to testify.A physical ability should be demonstrable regardless of location.The distance of the leap was physically impossible for any human.

2. Analyze the theme of the fable based on the bystander's response. What argument is the text making about the nature of claims and evidence?

3. Examine the tone of the bystander's dialogue: 'Now, my good man, if this be all true there is no need of witnesses. Suppose this to be Rhodes; and now for your leap.' How does the author's word choice shape the tone and impact the boaster?

4. Defend or challenge the following statement using evidence from the text: 'The bystander's interruption is unfair because it ignores the psychological context of storytelling.'