FABLE XXXI
by John Gay · from Fables of John Gay (Somewhat Altered)
Adapted Version
There once was a boy named Leo. Leo loved to play. He played with his red car. He played with his blue ball. He played all day long. He even played at night. He played and played. His eyes felt heavy. His arms felt slow. He was very, very tired.
A little grey cloud came. It was soft and quiet. It was the Worry Cloud. It floated right over his head and waited. It was time for Leo to rest. Leo went to his warm bed. He closed his eyes. He rested his head on his soft pillow. Soon, Leo felt good and strong again. The little cloud floated away for now.
Now Leo wanted to build. He got his colorful blocks. He put a red block over a blue block. He built a big toy house. The house was very tall. It went up, up, up. He was very happy. But then, the Worry Cloud came back. It floated near his tall house. Leo looked at his house. He worried it would fall down. What if the blocks all tumbled? His happy feeling went away. He was not happy anymore.
Leo went outside to the garden. The sun was warm. He found smooth, shiny rocks. He collected many rocks and put them in a big pile. The pile was his treasure. But the Worry Cloud was there, too. It floated over his treasure. Leo looked at his rocks. He worried he would lose them. What if a bird took one? He felt sad.
Leo went to play with his friends. "I will be the leader," Leo said. He made the rules for all the games. "First, we run, then we hide." Everyone listened to him. But the Worry Cloud came again. It floated over the children. The other kids were quiet. They did not smile. Leo felt lonely. He worried they did not like his rules. He worried they did not like him.
So, Leo went to a quiet field. He wanted to be all alone. He sat on the green grass. But the Worry Cloud was still there. It floated right above him. It made a little shadow on the ground. Leo looked up at the cloud. He was not scared. He was not sad. "You are always here," he said softly.
The cloud just floated. Leo smiled a small smile. "Okay," he said. "You can stay." He got up from the grass. The little cloud moved with him. They walked together across the field. And that was okay.
Original Story
FABLE XXXI.
The Universal Apparition.
A rake who had, by pleasure stuffing,
Raked mind and body down to nothing,
In wretched vacancy reclined,
Enfeebled both in frame and mind.
As pain and languor chose to bore him,
A ghastly phantom rose before him:
"My name is Care. Nor wealth nor power
Can give the heart a cheerful hour
Devoid of health—impressed by care.
From pleasures fraught with pains, forbear."
The phantom fled. The rake abstained,
And part of fleeing health retained.
Then, to reform, he took a wife,
Resolved to live a sober life.
Again the phantom stood before him,
With jealousies and fears to bore him.
Her smiles to others he resents,
Looks to the charges and the rents,
Increasing debts, perplexing duns,
And nothing for the younger sons.
He turned his thoughts to lucre's thirst,
And stored until his garners burst:
The spectre haunted him the more.
Then poverty besieged his door:
He feared the burglar and the thief;
Nor light nor darkness brought relief.
Therefore he turned his thoughts to power,
To guard him in the midnight hour.
That he achieved—and then the sprite
Beleagued him morning, noon, and night.
He had no placid hour for rest;
Envy and hate his soul depressed,
And rivalry, and foe for friend,
And footfalls which his steps attend.
Therefore he sought a rustic bower—
Groves, fields, and fruit-trees, filled each hour;
But droughts and rains, and blighting dews,
On foot, on horseback, Care pursues.
He faced the phantom, and addressed:
"Since you must ever be my guest,
Let me, as host, perform my due;
Go you the first, I'll follow you."
Story DNA
Moral
Care, in its various forms, is an inescapable part of the human condition, regardless of one's life choices or circumstances.
Plot Summary
A rake, having ruined himself with pleasure, is visited by a phantom named Care, who warns him of life's pains. The rake attempts to reform by marrying, pursuing wealth, and seeking power, but Care relentlessly reappears in different forms—domestic anxieties, fear of loss, and envy. Even when he retreats to nature, Care pursues him. Finally, the rake resigns himself to Care's inescapable presence, accepting it as an eternal companion.
Themes
Emotional Arc
despair to resignation
Writing Style
Narrative Elements
Cultural Context
John Gay was an English poet and dramatist, known for his fables which often satirized contemporary society and morals. This fable reflects Enlightenment-era concerns about human nature and the futility of seeking ultimate happiness through external means.
Plot Beats (13)
- A rake, having ruined himself with excessive pleasure, lies in a state of physical and mental emptiness.
- A ghastly phantom named Care appears to him, warning him that health is paramount and pleasure leads to pain.
- The rake heeds the warning, abstains from pleasure, and recovers some health.
- He attempts to reform his life by marrying and living soberly.
- Care reappears, now manifesting as the anxieties of marriage, jealousy, financial burdens, and family concerns.
- The rake then turns to accumulating wealth, storing it until his barns overflow.
- The spectre of Care haunts him even more, bringing fears of burglars and thieves, leaving him no peace.
- He seeks power, believing it will protect him.
- He achieves power, but Care besieges him constantly with envy, hate, rivalry, and suspicion.
- Finally, he retreats to a rustic bower, hoping to find peace in nature.
- Care relentlessly pursues him there through droughts, rains, and blighting dews.
- The rake confronts the phantom, acknowledging its inescapable presence.
- He resigns himself to Care, inviting it to be his perpetual guest and lead the way.
Characters
The Rake ★ protagonist
Initially gaunt and pale from dissipation, with a weakened frame. Later, he regains some health but remains somewhat worn by his anxieties. He is of average height and build, but his posture often reflects his current state of mind – slumped when despondent, rigid when anxious.
Attire: Initially, fine but disheveled 18th-century English gentleman's attire, perhaps a silk waistcoat unbuttoned, a rumpled cravat, and a slightly stained frock coat. Later, more sober, well-maintained but still fashionable 18th-century clothing, such as a dark wool coat, breeches, and a clean linen shirt, reflecting his attempts at reform.
Wants: To escape 'Care' and find lasting contentment, peace, and security in life.
Flaw: His inability to find inner peace, constantly seeking external solutions (pleasure, marriage, wealth, power, solitude) to an internal problem. He is easily swayed by immediate desires or fears.
Begins as a dissolute pleasure-seeker, attempts to reform through marriage, wealth, power, and solitude, but ultimately learns that 'Care' is an inescapable part of life, leading to a resigned acceptance.
Impulsive, pleasure-seeking, restless, anxious, ultimately resigned. He is driven by a desire for contentment but constantly seeks it in external circumstances.
Image Prompt & Upload
A young adult man of average height and slender build, with a sallow complexion and dark, slightly thinning hair. His face shows signs of weariness, with hollowed cheeks and dark circles under his eyes. He wears a rumpled 18th-century English gentleman's frock coat in dark wool, an unbuttoned cream linen waistcoat, and dark breeches. His posture is slightly slumped, and he has a resigned, weary expression. Plain white background, full body visible head to toe, single figure, no watermark, no text, no signature.
Care ⚔ antagonist
A ghastly, ethereal phantom, translucent and indistinct, yet clearly discernible. It has no fixed form but manifests as a looming, oppressive presence. Its form is not physically imposing but psychologically so, appearing as a shadow or a wavering figure.
Attire: No specific wardrobe, as it is a phantom. Its form might suggest tattered, flowing drapery or simply an indistinct, shadowy outline, emphasizing its non-corporeal nature.
Wants: To exist as an inherent part of the human condition, particularly in response to the Rake's choices and desires. It is not driven by personal wants but by its nature as 'Care'.
Flaw: None, as it is a fundamental aspect of existence. It cannot be defeated or escaped.
Remains constant throughout the story, serving as the unchanging force that the Rake attempts, and fails, to escape. Its arc is one of consistent presence, highlighting the Rake's changing understanding of it.
Relentless, omnipresent, inescapable, didactic (in its initial speech). It is not malicious in a personal sense, but rather an embodiment of the anxieties and consequences of life.
Image Prompt & Upload
A ghastly, translucent, and indistinct phantom figure, appearing as a wavering, shadowy outline of a human form. Its 'face' is gaunt and dark, with deep-set, empty 'eyes'. Its body is ethereal, with no clear clothing, suggesting tattered, flowing, dark mist. It is slightly hunched, looming over the viewer. Plain white background, full body visible head to toe, single figure, no watermark, no text, no signature.
Locations
The Rake's Chambers
A private room where a rake, enervated by excessive pleasure, reclines in a state of 'wretched vacancy'. The atmosphere is one of profound weariness and ennui.
Mood: Desolate, weary, melancholic, oppressive
The initial appearance of the phantom 'Care' to the pleasure-sated rake, prompting his first attempt at reform.
Image Prompt & Upload
A dimly lit, sparsely furnished Georgian-era bedchamber, with heavy velvet drapes drawn across a tall window, filtering weak, diffused light. A single, ornate but unkempt chaise lounge dominates the foreground, its cushions rumpled. The walls are paneled in dark wood, and a faint dust motes dance in the still air, emphasizing the room's neglect and the occupant's languor. no border, no frame, no watermark, no text, no signature, edge-to-edge illustration.
The Rake's Estate/Home
The domestic setting of the rake's married life, where he faces the anxieties of family, finances, and social standing. It's a place of increasing debts and domestic strife.
Mood: Anxious, burdened, financially strained, domestically tense
The phantom 'Care' reappears, now manifesting as domestic anxieties, jealousy, and financial worries after the rake marries and attempts a sober life.
Image Prompt & Upload
A cluttered, slightly disheveled drawing-room within a modest Georgian townhouse. Sunlight streams weakly through tall, paned windows, illuminating stacks of ledgers and scattered papers on a heavy mahogany desk. A half-finished embroidery lies abandoned on a nearby armchair, and the general impression is one of respectable but strained domesticity, with an underlying tension in the air. no border, no frame, no watermark, no text, no signature, edge-to-edge illustration.
The Rustic Bower/Country Retreat
A natural, idyllic setting sought by the rake as a refuge from worldly cares, filled with groves, fields, and fruit-trees. However, even here, 'Care' pursues him through natural disasters.
Mood: Initially peaceful and hopeful, but ultimately invaded by natural anxieties and a sense of inescapable pursuit
The rake's final attempt to escape 'Care' by retreating to nature, only to find that environmental worries and natural disasters still bring the phantom to him.
Image Prompt & Upload
A sprawling English country estate garden, transitioning into wilder groves of mature oak and beech trees. A winding, unpaved path leads through tall, unkempt grass in a sun-dappled field, bordered by rows of fruit trees heavy with ripening apples. The sky above is a mix of bright sun and looming storm clouds, with patches of parched earth visible near the path, hinting at recent drought. no border, no frame, no watermark, no text, no signature, edge-to-edge illustration.
