Aesop's Fables · Chapter
The Image-Seller explained
A man carves a wooden image of Mercury and tries to sell it in the market by boasting of its power to bring luck and gain.
What happens
A man carves a wooden image of Mercury and tries to sell it in the market by boasting of its power to bring luck and gain. When a bystander questions why he would sell such a valuable god, the man admits that while the god brings profit, it does so slowly, and he needs money immediately.
Themes in this chapter
Cunning and Deception
The image-seller uses deceptive advertising to sell the statue, claiming it brings luck while hiding his own impatience and greed.
Human Nature and Vice
The story highlights human impatience and the desire for quick wealth, exposing the seller's hypocrisy and short-sightedness.
Characters to notice
- Mercury
The image sold is of Mercury, the god of gain and luck.
Key passages
“A god for sale! a god for sale! One who’ll bring you luck and keep you lucky!”
He shouted that he was selling a god that would bring and maintain good fortune for its owner.
The seller's boastful advertisement contrasts with his own lack of faith in the god's slow returns.
“he brings gain, it is true, but he takes his time about it; whereas I want money at once.”
The seller admits that the god does bring profit, but too slowly for his immediate needs.
This reveals the seller's hypocrisy and impatience, undermining his earlier claims.