# The Ant; The Pheas‑ant explained — How to Tell the Birds from the Flowers and Other Woodcuts

> Chapter companion for How to Tell the Birds from the Flowers and Other Woodcuts by Robert Williams Wood.

## What happens

A brief verse distinguishing the ant from the pheasant by noting the ant's antennae and the pheasant's lack thereof, compensated by a small red cap (a fez) to avoid baldness.

## Themes in this chapter

### Wordplay and Homophones

The poem plays on the similarity between 'ant' and 'pheasant' through their names and physical traits (antennae vs. fez).

### Nature and Classification

Compares two species (ant and pheasant) based on observable features, highlighting a humorous misclassification.

## Character check-ins

### the Birds

The pheasant is a bird, implicitly grouped with other birds in the book's context.

## Key lines

> The ant is known by his ant‑ennae, Where‑as the pheas‑ant hasn’t any, And that is why he wears instead, A small red cap upon his head

The ant is identified by its antennae, but the pheasant lacks them, so it wears a small red cap to cover its bald head.

_Simplifies the whimsical comparison between the ant's antennae and the pheasant's fez._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/how_to_tell_the_birds_from_the_flowers_and_other_se/chapters/the-ant-the-pheas-ant
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/how_to_tell_the_birds_from_the_flowers_and_other_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/how_to_tell_the_birds_from_the_flowers_and_other_se/chapters