story of Jupiter and the bee

1. MYTHOLOGY AND
FOLKLORE

2. The Jupiter and
the Bee

3. AUTHOR
AESOP was a Greek fabulist and storyteller credited with a number of
fables now collectively known as Aesop’s Fables. Although his
existence remains unclear and no writings by him survive, numerous
tales credited to him were gathered across the centuries and in many
languages in a storytelling tradition that continues to this day. Many of
the tales associated with him are characterized by anthropomorphic
animal characters.

4. CHARACTERS
THE QUEEN BEE – queen of the bees; the one
who gives sweet honey to the king.
KING JUPITER – a wise king of Romans
JUNO – the one who tasted the honey.

5. SETTING
The setting of the story was in Jupiter’s
Kingdom.

6. PLOT
The story says the bee wished and prayed for a weapon she could use but
the gods were silent. She then decided she should go to Jupiter, the king of
the Roman gods, for help.
Much as the bee could have gone to a lesser god, she only knew where and
how to find Jupiter. Therefore, she packed up some honey and flew off in
search of the god. With her package, the bee flew to heaven and buzzed
for some time to catch Jupiter’s attention.

7. PLOT
When Jupiter noticed the bee, he asked what she wanted and the bee
said she had brought him a gift of honey. After tasting it, Jupiter was
amazed by the taste and asked if the bee needed anything from Jupiter.
The Queen Bee’s Wish
Much as the bee was trembling due to fear, she was determined to try to
get help. The queen bee explained to Jupiter that she was tired of people
and animals stealing her honey and therefore needed a weapon.

8. PLOT
Jupiter was amused by the bee’s wish and was happy to grant it. Given
the honey’s sweet taste, he knew it would only attract more thieves. He
also wanted more honey for himself. The queen bee asked for a stinger.
Jupiter’s Anger
After the bee said she needed a stinger, Jupiter became angry because
he thought the bee would use it to sting the gods. The bee had to explain
her need for the stinger as she jerked back in fear..

9. PLOT
The story says the bee almost knocked out Juno, Jupiter’s wife that had
been listening to the on-going conversation.
Juno Tastes the Honey
Jupiter gave Juno some of his honey and she was amazed by the taste
too. She agreed with the bee that such a great taste needed protection.
She suggested to Jupiter to grant every bee a stinger, which he did.

10. PLOT
Payment
But it wasn’t all that simple. In return for providing all the bees with
stingers, Jupiter required payment in the form of death. The payment was
that every bee that would use their stinger would die.
This meant that the bee’s choice was either to share his honey and live or
protect by stinging and die. The bee didn’t like the payment bit and wanted
to change but it was too late – Jupiter had already granted the wish.

11. ENDING
When she finally flew back to earth, she hid from
other bees. However, they were loyal and knew she
did it in good faith.

12. MORAL
Lessons from This Story
There are lots of lessons to pick from this story. Sharing is one of
them. People should learn to share with other people what they have.
Probably people were stealing from the bee because she never
wanted to share her honey.
Loyalty is another one – we shouldn’t be quick to judge, rather first
understand why the person did what they did..

13. THEME
The theme of the story is Sharing is Caring.

14. CONCLUSION
The Roman myth of Jupiter and the bee
isn’t just a story but rather an
illustration of ‘be careful of what you
wish for’. When your wish is granted,
you might not like the repercussions.

15. Thank you