Author: Jean de La Fontaine

---

     A pot of milk upon her cushion'd crown,
     Good Peggy hasten'd to the market town;
     Short clad and light, with speed she went,
     Not fearing any accident;
     Indeed, to be the nimbler tripper,
     Her dress that day,
     The truth to say,
     Was simple petticoat and slipper.
     And, thus bedight,
     Good Peggy, light, - 
     Her gains already counted, - 
     Laid out the cash
     At single dash,
     Which to a hundred eggs amounted.
     Three nests she made,
     Which, by the aid
     Of diligence and care were hatch'd.
     'To raise the chicks,
     I'll easy fix,'
     Said she, 'beside our cottage thatch'd.
     The fox must get
     More cunning yet,
     Or leave enough to buy a pig.
     With little care
     And any fare,
     He'll grow quite fat and big;
     And then the price
     Will be so nice,
     For which, the pork will sell!
     'Twill go quite hard
     But in our yard
     I'll bring a cow and calf to dwell - 
     A calf to frisk among the flock!'
     The thought made Peggy do the same;
     And down at once the milk-pot came,
     And perish'd with the shock.
     Calf, cow, and pig, and chicks, adieu!
     Your mistress' face is sad to view;
     She gives a tear to fortune spilt;
     Then with the downcast look of guilt
     Home to her husband empty goes,
     Somewhat in danger of his blows.

     Who buildeth not, sometimes, in air
     His cots, or seats, or castles fair?
     From kings to dairy women, - all, - 
     The wise, the foolish, great and small, - 
     Each thinks his waking dream the best.
     Some flattering error fills the breast:
     The world with all its wealth is ours,
     Its honours, dames, and loveliest bowers.
     Instinct with valour, when alone,
     I hurl the monarch from his throne;
     The people, glad to see him dead,
     Elect me monarch in his stead,
     And diadems rain on my head.
     Some accident then calls me back,
     And I'm no more than simple Jack.[1]

---

Type of Poem: Fable

Date Written:

Date Published:

Language: English

Keywords: Public Domain

Source: Public Domain Collection

Publisher:

Rights/Permissions: Public Domain

Comments/Notes: This poem seems to be a morality tale about the dangers of overreaching ambition, daydreaming, and not focusing on the task at hand, using the character of Peggy as an example. The tone is playful, yet cautionary, using a narrative format to illustrate a larger life lesson. The theme of caution against excessive ambition is clear as Peggy, in her imagination, quickly escalates her prospective profits from a pot of milk to owning a cow and calf, before she accidentally spills her milk and loses everything.

The structure of the poem helps to emphasize its moral, with Peggy's escalating daydreams taking up a significant portion of the verse, only to come crashing down in an instant. This abrupt return to reality reflects the poem's message about the perils of not focusing on one's current situation. The use of rhymed couplets and varying line lengths lends a rhythm and flow to the poem that carries the reader along with Peggy's dreams and sudden downfall. The poem also employs some humor in its depiction of Peggy's grand delusions, helping to make its moral more digestible.

The final stanzas of the poem broaden its scope, suggesting that this tendency to dream and overreach is not unique to Peggy, but a common human trait. It suggests that everyone, from a king to a dairy woman, entertains illusions of grandeur, only to be brought back to reality by unforeseen circumstances. This universalization of Peggy's experience underscores the poem's moral and its applicability to the reader's own life.