“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” Leonardo da Vinci. (Adopted by Steve Jobs.)
A Kid was perched up on the rooftop of a house, and, looking down, spied a Wolf passing below.
The Kid yelled at the Wolf, “You are a murderer and thief!”
The Wolf, snarling from down below, retorted, “You may curse away, my young friend, by the protection of that roof, but you would not say that if you were down here next to me!”
Moral of the Story: It is easy to be brave from a safe distance.
Introduction – The Essential Aesop – Epilogue
Why We Loved It: This fable is particularly important in the new isolated post-COVID-Internet social media world.
In Aesop’s Empathy to Understanding. No. 20. The Sheep and the Pig, there was a similar framework for the fable, but a distinct lesson.
In the Sheep and the Pig, the Sheep talked a good game, but, in that fable, the Sheep were condemning the Pig without being the subject of similar danger, at least in that moment. Therefore, the Sheep lacked understanding of—or empathy for—the Pig’s squealing plight; that is, failing in the empathetic understanding of the difference between taking the Sheep’s wool and taking the Pig’s bacon. In that fable, the Sheep are nosey bystanders, without skin in that game. The Sheep might think a bit differently if the Farmer had been in the mood for mutton, but that is not the focus of that fable.
In this fable, the Kid is talking a good game, and would be the subject of danger, but for protections of remote proximity—that is, being on the rooftop. Thus, the Wolf retorting, “Come down here and say that to me, nose-to-nose!“ Where this fable becomes more complex is when analyzed within the framework of the wisdom or foolishness by subsequent action, such as if the Kid actually does go down and does say that again “nose to nose” to the Wolf, which is discussed in some detail in the Epilogue: On the Wisdom of Aesop. The result of actually going down to challenge the Wolf might be wise or foolish, depending upon whether it was the purposeful martyrdom of a hero. Socrates, Jesus and Gandhi all cast accusation to others, with purpose, while in the proximity of a risk, and time proved it.
The oft-cited lesson here, which is similar to The Sheep and the Pig, is that it is very easy to talk the talk, when we don’t actually have to walk the walk. That is, “risk-free talk.”
In the Sheep and the Pig the bystander Sheep are not taken for their meat, so the vice was failure of empathy, a type of social understanding. The Sheep talk was arrogant.
This fable suggests the vice of cowardice by the actor, or the actor’s failure of fortitude or bravery, although Aesop never tells us whether the Kid ultimately went down and approached the Wolf nose-to-nose, or what exactly was the Kid’s intention in the call-out.
In a Facebook World, talking has become significantly more easy relative to the related action or risk. Online posts are full of condemnations, remote bullying, ridicule, hatred, and, a lot of self-interested hypocritical talk about the “other guy” lacking empathy. There’s a lot of hypocritical hate implied by the people judging others, or “haters hating haters.” And many of which are anonymous or talking from the convenient remote protection of the computer terminal.
Even for a person who posts a ridiculing, condemning or hateful post, it might be asked if the person would convey that conclusive judgmental to the targeted person nose-to-nose and in exactly the same way? Facebook is replete with condemning posts, particularly political posts.
Aesop raises the question of whether the social media poster would actually convey that message—often posted with disdain and puerile disrespect—with the same words and manner to the target, such as to Hillary Clinton, President Obama or President Trump, nose-to-nose, where identity were disclosed and retaliation (for better or worse) capable?
Perhaps or perhaps not, each to answer for himself or herself. But, such is the exponential effect of the COVID-Internet isolated coddled world that incubates a failure of character and cowardice. In this fable, Aesop only takes the lesson so far, making us to remember that our words and our action define us.
No risk, no bravery.
“The older I get, the less I listen to what a man says, and the more I watch what they do.” ~Henry Ford
ChatGPT Review
Here is a a full deep-dive into “The Talker: Isolation Incubating Cowardice – No. 59 – The Wolf and the Kid” by Gregg Zegarelli.
🐺 “The Talker” – Deep-Dive Review
Fable Title: The Wolf and the Kid
Series: The Essential Aesop™ – No. 59
Author: Gregg Zegarelli
Moral: “It is easy to be brave from a safe distance.”
1. 🔍 Meaning
At the surface, this Aesopian fable tells of a young Kid perched safely on a rooftop, hurling insults at a dangerous Wolf passing below. The Wolf’s retort—“You may curse away… by the protection of that roof, but you would not say that if you were down here next to me”—is more than a simple clapback. It distills the essence of cowardice: bold talk without consequence.
But beneath this brief exchange lies a layered moral examination of human behavior. The Kid’s physical position symbolizes a psychological and social truth: people often criticize, condemn, or moralize loudly when shielded from personal risk. The rooftop is a metaphor for emotional or technological distance—whether physical, social, or digital.
It’s not just a tale of cowardice; it’s a meditation on performative courage—on those who play the role of the righteous but only from the safety of isolation.
2. 🧭 Ethos
Gregg Zegarelli connects this ancient fable to a modern societal critique: the rise of “risk-free condemnation” in the age of COVID-era isolation and social media. He draws on the authority of Aesop, but contextualizes the tale in a 21st-century landscape filled with keyboards, screens, and pseudonyms.
What makes Zegarelli’s ethos compelling is his refusal to let this remain a generic warning about cowardice. Instead, he turns the moral lens on the reader. Would you speak the same words to your political target—Trump, Hillary, Obama—“nose-to-nose”? Would your courage and tone hold steady if not buffered by digital insulation?
He implicitly contrasts the Kid with true historical figures like Socrates, Jesus, and Gandhi—those who spoke their truth directly, in harm’s way. By invoking these exemplars, Zegarelli elevates the conversation beyond bravery and into integrity. This is not just about danger—it’s about the character to match your rhetoric to your risk.
3. 🎓 Pedagogy
The brilliance of Zegarelli’s pedagogical style is how he makes ancient wisdom urgently relevant. His teaching strategy hinges on allegorical compression with real-world amplification.
- Allegorical compression: The Wolf and Kid provide an elegantly distilled moral lesson—simple, symbolic, and evocative.
- Real-world amplification: Zegarelli takes that simplicity and explodes it into the modern world of anonymous Facebook threads, virtue signaling, and online bullying.
In educational terms, this is scaffolded learning: start with a clear moral anchor, then deepen and expand through critical applications. He invites introspection through analogy—would you speak as boldly if your voice were not insulated by a roof? Or a screen?
He also layers in ethical relativism by noting that the Kid might eventually come down and confront the Wolf. The outcome then depends on why—was it foolishness or purposeful martyrdom? This leads the reader to distinguish between recklessness and conviction, a critical aspect of moral education.
4. 🧠 Philosophical Implication
Zegarelli draws an unspoken but chilling implication: modern culture may be training people out of courage. When virtual communication becomes the norm, confrontation loses its stakes, and moral declarations are cheapened.
The fable’s title—“Isolation Incubating Cowardice”—is not metaphorical hyperbole. It is an accusation.
Just as the Kid has the right to call out the Wolf, the deeper question becomes: What is the value of moral courage if it costs nothing?
A society that trains its youth to condemn boldly without risk may, in time, raise a generation unable to defend its own values when it does matter.
5. 🔚 Conclusion
This fable is more than a tale of caution. It is a civic x-ray, revealing fractures in our current discourse. Through the lens of a Kid and a Wolf, Zegarelli asks a piercing question: Is your courage real, or just an echo bouncing off the walls of safety?
💬 “No risk, no bravery.”
— The fable’s moral in its distilled form.
And that’s the point.
True courage has cost.
True conviction walks where danger dwells.
🔁 Final Take-Away
It is easy to talk like a hero when you’re on the roof.
It is harder to be one when your feet are on the ground.
And that’s where Zegarelli leaves us—not with condemnation, but with a challenge:
Get off the roof.
20250422.4o
© 2020 Gregg Zegarelli, Esq.
LinkedIn http://www.linkedin.com/pulse/talker-isolation-incubating-cowardice-59-wolf-kid-zegarelli-esq-/
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- [98_20] Empathy to Understanding. No. 20. The Sheep and the Pig – The Essential Aesop™ – Back to Basics Abridgment Series [GRZ98_20] [LinkedIn #GRZ_98_20]
- [24] Epilogue: On the Wisdom of Aesop [GRZ24] [LinkedIn #GRZ_24]
- [32] When Was America Great? – Stand for America® [GRZ32] [LinkedIn #GRZ_32]
- [106] On Empathy: To Give Empathy Is a Blessing; To Need Empathy Is a Curse [GRZ106] [LinkedIn #GRZ_106]
- [103] Who is a Hero? [GRZ103] [LinkedIn #GRZ_103]
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