M akalah dalam Konferensi Int ernasional APNM E (Asia Pasific Net work for M oral Educat ion) ke-8 dengan t em a “ Learning from Diversit y and Commonalit y: Ways Forward for M oral Education in Asia Pasific” , Yogyakart a-Indonesia (UNY & Hot el Am barukm o), pada t anggal 26-30 Juni 2013.
M oral values in Satirical French Literature
for Learning M aterials
by
Dian Sw andayani
French Depart ment , Facult y of Languages and Art s, Yogyakart a St at e Universit y, Indonesia e-mail: diansw andayani_uny@yahoo.co.id
Abstract
This paper aims t o describe t he essence of moral values in French roman, Les Cont es du
Chat Perché w rit t en by M arcel Aymé. As a sat irical French lit erat ure, Les Cont es du Chat
Perché has a collect ion of fable t hat sat irized human societ y by best ow ing human charact erist ic upon animals. It is filled w it h personal invect ive and angry moral indignat ion. Furt hermore, t his fable, exposes t he w orld’s evil, i.e. injust ice, vanit y, avarice, hypocrisy, pedant ry, corrupt ion, w ile, and decept ion. Briefly, t his fable port rays animal charact ers act ing as humans but unlike t he fable usually lacks a moral. Therefore, discussing t he moral values in t he sat irical French roman Les Cont es du Chat Perché w hich analyzed human being about w ho and w hat human mat t ers means how t hey should behave and achieve t heir goals in living t heir lives in order t o be used as learning mat erials for reader.
Keyw ords : sat irical french lit erat ure, fable, m oral values
1. Introduction
People from mult i et hnic and mult i cult ure usually familiar w it h legend, and fairy
t ales. Fable once a popular and spread w idely in t he w orld. The fable is a kind of st ory t ales
w here human being w as represent ed in animal charact ers. The m oral of people is w ell
depict ed in animal. Fabel usually rich of m oral and charact er educat ions (Abrams, 1981:17).
Fable is regarded as t he oldest t ales and has been know n heredit arily. It becomes
favorit es for people especially t he children, as t hey oft en experienced w it h t he fairy t ales
and it s st ory. Through it s charact ers, such as cat s, t igers, lions, pigs, rabbit s, elephant s,
donkeys, monkeys, dears, and so on, makes t his fable closer t o children. The children highly
pay at t ent ion t o t his kind of st ory, as if t he st ory in t his fable brings t hem t o t he fant asy,
children have t he similar journey as t hose charact ers from t he fables. In anot her w ord w e
can say t hat as t he children absorb t he st ory from t he fable, so t hat t heir imaginat ive pow er
increase st rongly.
M any animal charact ers in fables are w idely used as a symbol of human life. Act ually
t hrough t hese charact ers w e can find some didact ic values such as polit eness in speaking
w it h ot hers, t hinking as human being does, and behave as a kind human being conduct s.
Bot h, explicit ly and implicit ly, t hose didact ics inside t he fables show some moral values. The
st ory t ales about Cinderella is one of t he fam ous fant asy fairy t ales in t he w orld. Alt hough
t he main charact er in Cinderella, w hich is Cinderella herself, but t here are support ing
charact ers represent ed by animals w ho alw ays loveable and ready t o help her. Those animal
alw ays around her t o cheer her up w hen she is so sad or encount er a bad sit uat ion.
We also know about anot her fam ous st ory of Hat chiko from Japan. Hat chiko, t he
name of t he dog, show s us how very loyal he w as t o his mast er. Every day he alw ays w ait for
his mat er com ing back home, w it hout realizing t hat his mast er already died. Hat chiko st ill
w ait ing for his mast er at t he same place and t ime unt il he himself die as w ell. Through a
charact er like some animal around Cinderella and Hat chiko, w e found many human being
charact ers. It is t rue t hat in t erms of moral values in t he lit erat ure w ork, fables has t he
st rong pow er t o voice t heir m oral values.
In Indonesia, t he fable like Kancil or a cunning m ousedeer is so w ell know n and full
of m oral values along w it h it serials. Kancil’ life alw ays close t o danger, but as he is so smart
and cunning lit t le dear, he oft en be able t o escape from t hose dangers. Furt her, he even can
cont inues his life w it hout any serious st raggles. Kancil is so blessed and even play some
t ricks over his enemies. Fort unat ely, he oft en become t he w inner. On t he ot her side, Kancil
also face a difficult sit uat ion and hopeless. We can find t his st ory w hen Kancil have a run
compet it ion w it h a t urt le. As Kancil feels t hat he is st ronger and smart er t han t he t urt le,
t hen he becomes arrogant and look dow n his rival. Unfort unat ely, as being underdog and
humiliat ed by Kancil, t he t urt le has more brilliant t hought about how t o beat Kancil. Turt le
uses his st rat egy, and finally w in t he com pet it ion. We can also find some ot her versions
about t his Kancil fable. Somet ime Kancil act s as good Kancil, cunning Kancil, and a smart
Kancil. All of t hose st ory alw ays symbolize human at t it ude in daily life. All t hese moral values
appeared from Kancil fable can be w ell accept ed, int ernalized, or even w ell reject ed. Good
2. Le Contes du Chat Perché : the satirical French lit erature
In French lit erary, fables st ories w ere allegedly appeared in t he M iddle Ages or w hich
so-called Le M oyen Age in t he form of a narrat ive (st ory). During t he cent ury, t he lit erary
w ork in realism and sat irist w ere t w o st yle w hich much appreciat ed by t he public. Fable t hat
appeared heredit ary in societ y, solely cont ain moral values and underlined philosophy t hat
good life and bad life. Le Rom an de Renard, or The Tale of a Fox w as first fable of t he most
popular st ory t ale in t he French lit erary hist ory. This fable show s Fox as t he main charact er
w ho is an int elligent animal as w ell as cunning one. The Fox (or Renard) has a high spirit , a
good bravery and courage, clever in deploying w ords and charm ing at t it ude t hat makes he
much preferred and becomes successful charact er w ho can live in t he palace as w ell as w it h
t he rich fam ily. This fable lat er on becomes popular in French vocabulary w hich means fox
as a kind of animal as w ell as it s denot at ive meaning.
One of t he French fable t hat w ill be discussed in t his art icle is a collect ion of fables
ent it led Les Cont es du Chat Perché or The Tales of a Perched Chat , w rit t en by a French
aut hor, named M arcel Aymé. Aymé, t he aut hor w as born in 1902, and published his first
collect ion of t hese fables in 1934. He st art s his career as a journalist since his arrival in Paris
in 1925, Aymé has finished many journalism art icles, including lit erary w orks, in t he form of
romance, novels, fairy t ales, drama and m ovie script s. As his w rit ing st yle w as so popular in
playing his language and easily underst ood t hat placed his became know n as a t alent ed
young w rit er during t hat period of t ime.
Passing his childhood and t eenager life in a family of blacksmit hs in rural
environment s, make M arcel Aymé feel close t o nat ure and t he common people. In fact , he
oft en spent his t ime by w alking around his village and t he forest nearby. All t hese moment s
had st rong affect s for him t ow ards t he development of his t alent s in t he fut ure as an aut hor
of fables. During his t ravel around villages and forest s, Aymé discovered t he myst eries of
t he animal’s life and it s nat ural surroundings. Through his experiences, M arcel Aymé
successfully accom plished Les Cont es du Chat Perché as fable lit erat ure in t ragi-comedie’s
genre. His collect ion of fables w hich has no less popular w it h t he of Le Rom an de Renard
can be enjoyed by readers of all ages. This fable collect ion consist ing of 17 fables and w as
ext raordinary acclaimed by t he readers, and w as reprint ed for several t imes over a period of
50 years since it w as first published (Et erst ein, 1998: 32-33). The st ories in Les Cont es du
flow ing or sequences and and t he t hemes of t he st ory are also simply displayed and rich
w it h ridiculous moment s and also dominat ed by funny behavior of different charact ers.
In Les Cont es du Chat Perché, M arcel Aymé w as show ing his expert ise in displaying
charact ers of animals. He somet imes does not display some animal figures as it is depict ed
as st ereot ype. For example cat s as pet s w hich is usually port rayed st ereot ype as slacker
animal, but in t his fable collect ion Aymé depict s it as a w ise animal w ho loves t o help ot her
animals. His hobby as perching in a t ree (le chat perché) makes t he Cat be able t o see and
observe t he variet y of moment s and act ivit ies t aking place around him and t he he is able t o
give advices, counseling, and even forbid ot her animals. Similarly, it is also happened t o t he
Donkey. As a donkey usually st ereot yped as a st upid and dumb animal, ot herw ise in his
st ory, Aymé describs it as a cunning animal figure. And t he even t he goose t hat usually looks
graceful animals unfort unat ely in his st ory, it is appearing as st upid and dumb goose.
The similar t hings also t akes place t o t he figures of Tigers and Wolves.
Convent ionally, Tiger and Wolf figures are st ereot yped as t he w ild animals, vicious and
loved killing his vict ims cruelly. But in Les Cont es du Chat Perché, t here w as a moment w hen
t he Tiger and t he Wolf face t o Duck, t hen bot h, Tiger and W olf made a prom ise t hat t hey
w ill not be mean and cruel anymore. Bot h of t hese animals, Tiger and W olf have a hum ble
at t it udes and are w illing t o change t heir bad habit s. It seems t hat some charact ers described
in t he Les Cont es du Chat Perché have a unique charact er unlike t he st ereot ype t hat has
been t he generally underst ood and believed.
Like in Indonesia, in French t he appearance of fable as a lit erary w ork t hat is bot h
show ing t he realism and sat irist , is very popular. Fable oft en full of moral values w hich
implied by t he funny and comical charact ers act ually present s a role as sat ire. For example,
t he Pig charact er in Les Cont es du Chat Perché has been described overw eight . But t he Pig
w ish t o have t he same look as t he Peacock w hose bird figures, beaut iful and slim. To pursue
t he desire, Pig does some exercises every day and also observes diet . From t his, it can be
underst ood t hat w hen t he fat body of Pig desire t o have slim body as t he Peacock, drive
some mot ivat ions for t he Pig t o do exercise and diet every day. W it hout t hose st rong effort ,
t he w ish of Pig t o have slim body w ill soon disappeared. When w e w ish somet hing should be
follow ed by st rong effort . W it hout any effort , our desires w ill be in vain. We can conclude
t hat fables provide a crit ical view w ill invit es t he readers t o explore t he moral values and
3. The moral values in Le Contes du Chat Perché as the learning materials.
In general, lit erat ure including t he fables cont ains about w orldview of life’s principles
and moral values. As it is rich of moral values and w ise behaves, so t hat t hrough t he
charact ers inside t he st ory (or fables), t he aut hor w ish t o offer some ideals life for t he
readers. As it is ment ioned above, some charact ers namely t he Pig, t he Cat , t he Tiger, t he
Wolf, in t he fable collect ion of Les Cont es du Chat Perché, w rit t en by M arcel Aymé is
significant ly int erest ing t o be discuss as t hey have dominant roles.
According t o st ruct uralism t heory of lit erat ure, a main charact er is defined as
individuals w ho experienced some or most of t he sequence of event s and serves as t he
main driving st ory (Schmit t , 1982:63). In general, in a fable t here is more t han one
charact ers. Among t hose charact ers, t here w ill be one or m ore w ho act as t he main
charact ers. These main charact ers usually called as t he hero, or prot agonist figures. The
hero figure is keep seeking t he aut hent ic values w it hin t he degraded w orld (Faruk, 1994:18).
This definit ion begins w it h underst anding about t he concept of a charact er in Goldmann’s
concept w hich means t he st ory about t he degraded of degraded aut hent ic values in a w orld
w hich is also being degraded. The search w as conduct ed by a problemat ic hero (t he hero).
The hero figure (prot agonist ) serves as t he lead charact er along w it h t he ant agonist
charact ers. In accordance w it h t he roles, a hero charact er plays an im port ant role as t he
cent er of t he sequences in t he st ory (Schm it t , 1982:64).
The charact ers have t he posit ions and funct ions of each part in t he st ory w hen t hey
have been involved in side t he st ory from being t he figures, w hich depict s t he individualist ,
act ions, w ays of t hinking, and t he life (Chat man, 1980:170-108). Les Cont es du Chat Perché
have animal charact ers t hat behave like human beings. They speak, behave, act , t hink, and
feel just as t he same as t he human beings do. In Les Cont es du Chat Perché, some
prot agonist charact ers w ho w ell behave are represent ed by t he Cat , t he Cow , t he Goose,
t he Dog, t he Chicken, t he Wolf, t he Tiger, and t he Pig. While t he ant agonist charact ers w ho
misbehave are represent ed by t he Fox, t he Peacock, t he Eagle, t he Donkey, and t he Goose.
The Cow is a prot agonist w ho can read and count . For t he Cow t here w ill be no day w it hout
reading and count ing. The Cow is kind of animal w ho represent a smart t hinker and loves
“ J’ai t rop de respect pour la science et la philosophie” . Ce boeuf blanc ét ait un boeuf t rès savant , qui savait lire dans les livres les plus difficiles. Pourvu qu’il fut de bonne humeur, il conseillait volont iers les bêt es dans l’embarras.
“ I am very fond w it h science and philosophy” . That is a very clever cow , w ho is able t o read all kind of books as hard as it can be. Besides, he is alw ays lovable and deliberat ely like t o advise t he ot her anim als t hat oft en m ake t roubles.
Unlike t he Cow w ho is described as t he prot agonist hero charact er, t he Fox and t he
Eagle figures w ho are port rayed as ant agonist charact ers who pret end t o be good w it h t he
Chicken and w ish t o make friend w it h—w hen t hey w ill act ually w ish t o size eat t he Chicken.
This can be seen in t he follow ing monologue deliveredby t he Chicken.
Quand j’y pense. Ah! Je suis en colère, vous savez! Figurez-vous que cet t e nuit , le renard est venu roder aut our du poulailler pour la t roisièm e fois depuis quinze jours. Au secours! Il y a une buse qui veut m e m anger!
When I am t hinking about t hat , ah, I am upset . Will you believe me, t he night w hen t he Fox cam e around m y cage for t he t hird t im e in t his w eek? Oh please, t here is Eagle w ho w ould eat m e as it s prey!
The ot her animals from t he prot agonist charact er namely t he Duck, is port rayed as a
w ise leader w ho w ill deliver some advices, suggest ions and w arnings t o ot her animals. The
Duck is also oft en lead some meet ings w it h t he ot her animals t o solve t he problem. It can
be said t hat t he descript ion of t he Duck charact er in Les Cont es du Chat Perché is not only
as figure of a w ise leader, but also a good list ener w ho alw ays gives t he best solut ion for
every problem appeared. The Duck also described as an animal w ho likes t o learn
Geography. As he w as so diligence, t herefore he w as able t o break free from t he bad t hreat
of t he Tiger. The Duck answ ered all t he Geography quest ions launched by t he Tiger.
Besides t he st ory of t he Duck figure ment ioned above, t he st ory of t he duckling
seem t o be int erest ing t oo. This Duckling refused t o be t aught by her mot her on how t o
cat ch fish. In fact , t he Duckling w as so lazy t o learn how t o cat ch a fish. She alw ays hope t hat
her mot her w ill serve t he fish for her. One day she saw t he Goose family w ere enjoying
cat ch fish in t he river. Wit hout first asking permission from her mot her, t he Duckling meet
t he lit t le Goose and t hey off looking for fish t oget her. Unfort unat ely t hey t ook a different
pat hs, t hen separat ed. The Duckling w ent up t o t he headw at ers. When he w as alone, not so
far from his spot , he saw a snake sw allow ed a frog. The lit t le Duckling w as so afraid and
cried, and st raight ly go back t o her mot her. He met t he mot her t o ask her apologize and
anymore. The mot her Duck lovingly forgive t he lit t le Ducking. This st ory about t he lit t le
Ducking charact er illust rat ed above is similar t o t ypical st ory of children’s problem in real
life t oday. A child somet imes w ant ed t o get aw ay from home and t hen ret urned home t o
st ay t oget her w it h t he fat her, t he mot her, brot her and sist er w it h a new aw areness and
feeling about t he w armt h and secure of living in a family.
The st ory of t he Duck and t he ot her animals in Les Cont es du Chat Perché w rit t en
M arcel Aymé show ing t he moralit y values. Some st ories of happiness, sadness and t hrilling
advent ures w ere experienced by different animal figures. These gave us some lessons about
t he values of life t hat w e have t o face and deal w it h any sit uat ion in our lives. Some moral
values such as self-sacrifice based on good purposes, responsibilit y, honest y, compassion,
passion, st ruggle, st rengt h, courage, and helping each has been coloring t he st ories in t his
collect ion of fable.
The st ories inside t he collect ion of fable Les Cont es du Chat Perché w rit t en M arcel
Aymé w hose full of m oral values also present t he equilibrium bet w een human being and
animals. All are t he same creat ures. Some similarit ies can be seen in t he figurat ive aspect s,
charact er aspect s, feelings, and human expressions in social order and also in t he
conversat ion done by t he charact ers in t he st ory. Each of animal charact er represent s a
cert ain t ype of human being and a social t ype. In lit erat ure t erm t his is w hat w e call st ory is
a reflect ion of real life. In t his case, lit erat ure has a role serves as a medium for applicat ion
of moral values t o it s readers. Through t he lect ure of fables, t he aut hor offered some
different kind of life w hich can be regarded as an example in social communit y. But w hen
t hose moral values w hich can be found in t he st ory of t he fable do not mat ch w it h t he moral
of t he societ y, t herefore t he readers w ill easily leave t he w it hout paying any at t ent ion. The
readers w ill consider t hat t hose moral values w ere just an et iquet t e.
It is hoped t hat t he collect ion of t he fable ent it led Les Cont es du Chat Perché w rit t en
by M arcel Aymé in French lit erat ure can serve as complement t o t he variet y of lit erary
genres t hat not only are ent ert aining but also giving advant ages. It seems t hat t hrough some
animal charact ers in fables, t he int ernalizat ion process of moral values can be implement ed
easily t o t he readers, especially for t he children as t hey need t o learn a lot about t he m oral
values. Build-up t he moral values in human being’s life t hrough t he reading of lit erat ure only
can be reached t hrough a long process. One of French philosophy named Jean Jacques
lit erary readings. Furt her he said fant asy including t he fable can be used as a medium in
developing children imaginat ion, as w ell as insert ing t he moral value t o t hat t hose value w ill
st ay t here in t he life of t he children and get t ing st ronger as t hey grow up. Furt her Rousseau
said, t he moral values in t he lit erat ure implicit ly appears t o disguise in various series of
evident . That is w hy lit erat ure as m oral learning mat erials never get rigid and even t aught
dogmat ically in inst illing moral values t o t he readers.
4. Conclusion.
In t he fable, t here are good element s and evil element s. The aut hor of fables t hen
use animals t o personify t he various t ypes of good and evil element s. Briefly, fable is st ory
t hat describes a dynamic life, w hich is t he life of t he man himself. In reading t he fable can be
considered as an effort t o develop t he charact er or personalit y of t he readers. Because
w hile reading t he fable t he readers w ill open t heir out look and t heir crit ical t hinking and
abilit y t ow rads m oral values offered in t he fable st ories. Here t he fable serves as a moral
learning mat erials t o deal w it h social issues in t he communit y and t he fluct uat ion dynamic
of life. In t he end, t his w ill inspire t he readers t o become more humaine.
Fables from around t he w orld, including t he collect ion of fable ent it led Les Cont es
du Chat Perché by M arcel Aymé, act ually has t remendous at t ract ion as moral lesson for t he
readers, especially children from an early age. St ories in fable from various cult ures all
around t he w orld oft en at t ract at t ent ion of t he children, w henever t hey list en t o t heir
parent s t ell t hem t he st ory or from st oryt eller t elling t he st ory. Trough st oryt elling, t he
children w ill easily ent ert ained and t hey w ill be able t o act ivat e all t heir senses t o pay
at t ent ion t o all aspect s from t he st oryt eller as w ell as from t he fable st ory. The pow erful
at t ract ion of t he fable st ory w ill drive t he children t o underst and t he m oral values w hich
st and in advices, inspirat ions and mot ivat ions.
Teaching and learning act ivit ies in element ary school using t he st ory t elling appears
t o help t eachers in at t aching t he subject mat erial t o t he level of affect ive domain of a
st udent . When t he element ary school st udent s hear t he fables t hat delivered in a int egrat ed
subject it likely t hat t he st udent s w ill remember t hat st ory for t he rest of t heir lives.
Alt hough in general t he fable is only regarded as learning mat erials in t he field of
Humanit ies subject s, how ever, t his mat erial can be used as t eaching mat erials in t he field of
in mat hemat ics, t he t eacher t hen can t ell t he st ory of a monkey w ho has t he magical pow er
t o mult iply everyt hing he t ouches, including his favorit es fruit s, bananas. While in Nat ural
Science t he t eacher can explain about t he disast er, raining phenomenon, light ning and
st orm, et c. The t eacher can also share t he st ory about t he animal t hat w ill be saved by
Noah, t he prophet int o his ship sailed up t he broad ocean. Therefore, st ory in t he fables can
be maint ained as subject mat erial, or moral lesson t o t he readers, especially early childhood
or school age st udent s.
References
Abrams, M .H. 1981. A Glossary of Lit erat ure Term s. New York: Richard and W ist on.
Et erst ein, Claude. 1998. Lit t érat ure Française. Paris: Hat ier.
Schmit t ,M .P and A.Viala. 1982. Savoir-Lire. Paris: Didier.
Chat man, Seymour. St ory and Discours. 1978. New york: It haca.
