In this blog post, we reflect on the work-life balance in modern society through Aesop’s fable “The Ant and the Grasshopper.”
The Ant and the Grasshopper is one of Aesop’s most famous fables, which everyone has heard at least once in their childhood. The grasshopper we know sings and plays all summer long. On the other hand, the ant works hard to gather food for the winter. When winter comes and the grasshopper has nothing to eat, he asks the ant for help, and thanks to the hard-working ant, the grasshopper is able to survive the winter. (This story may seem like a simple fable, but it contains a very profound lesson. The values and ways of life conveyed through fables have been passed down through generations and have had a significant impact on people’s outlook on life and behavior patterns. Aesop’s fables teach us to follow the example of the hard-working ants. Ultimately, people think that ants are better insects than grasshoppers and should be emulated.
However, we wonder if this interpretation is realistic and if it is not too systematic. (Are the lessons of Aesop’s fables still valid in modern society? Or do we need to reinterpret this story as times and circumstances change? These questions are topics that we need to reflect on more deeply. What are the characteristics of the ants in Aesop’s fables? Ants symbolize a mental system that emphasizes what is best for the long term, or the future. In contrast, the grasshopper represents a mental system that emphasizes short-term, immediate rewards and pleasures.
(It is not enough to simply divide ants and grasshoppers into the future and the present, or responsibility and pleasure. Human life requires a balance between these two elements, which interact in complex ways. Just as a life spent sacrificing the present for the future cannot necessarily be considered a good life, pursuing only immediate pleasures is not always the right choice. Our society often considers the diligence of ants a virtue and the attitude of grasshoppers lazy. However, human happiness cannot always be explained by such simple schemas.
The important point here is that the grasshopper is not always a force for evil. Both seek their best interests, but at different times. In the fable, the ant may be a model of “good behavior,” but for humans in the real world, the issue is not so simple. It is also a part of evolution that people feel good when they act, possess, and consume according to the desires guided by the grasshopper’s short-sighted mental system. It is difficult to deny that such short-term, self-centered impulses contribute to physical, financial, and mental happiness.
However, this is where the ants’ mindset comes into play, which recognizes that sacrifices must be made now in order to reap rewards in the future. The problem is that if we follow the ants’ voice exclusively, we may appear to be living a good life, but that does not necessarily lead to the best life. (In fact, balance is important in life. Both extreme attitudes, sacrificing too much for the future or, conversely, pursuing only present pleasures, can cause problems. We need the ability to enjoy every moment of life while preparing for the future.
If we only put off pleasure, we will be left with nothing but an aging body and loneliness in the future. There was a time when diligence was a virtue and hard work was enough to make a living. However, times have changed, and it is no longer possible to rely solely on diligence. (In modern society, diligence and hard work alone are no longer enough to solve everything. Today, creativity, flexibility, and the ability to adapt to new environments have become important.
Therefore, we must reflect on Aesop’s fable once again and find new lessons that are relevant to modern society. If Aesop were alive today, he would not have criticized the grasshopper. In this day and age, there are many ways to make a living. It is possible to find a talent that you are good at and turn that talent into a means of livelihood.
Happy people are those who can work as if they are playing and create value by turning play into work. It is important to know what talents you have, but it is more important to know how to enjoy using those talents.
Furthermore, the cricket was not originally a cricket. However, when the fable was spread to other countries, the insect was changed to a cricket because there were no crickets in those countries. However, cicadas are insects that spend several decades underground before mating and dying in the summer. Therefore, there is no need for cicadas to prepare for winter. (In this regard, we need to consider the cultural context of fables. It is important to understand how stories have changed as they have been passed down in different regions and what those changes mean.) But why do we perceive ants as superior beings? It is because we live in a temperate culture that is represented by ants. If you tell this story to people in a country that is not temperate, they will not understand it. Ultimately, this novel is educational content tailored to children who live in a temperate culture. The values and standards of life contained in the story were formed under the influence of the environment in which they live.
