Yet the term culture , which derives from agri culture , culti vation, suggests that the higher forms of art add to our experience something irreversible . Pedagogy is the art of cultivating the young so that they blossom into cultured adults. These botanical metaphors point to an irreversible process of creating social value. The work of high art , on the other hand, cultivates us in turning us away from the brutality of sacrifice. Having identified ourselves with the position of the tragic protagonist as well as with the social forces that require his downfall, we are less eager to rejoice in such downfalls in the future.
Fables are a part of oral culture that survives in our own.
We are invited to apply these lessons to our own lives. Because we like to be flattered, and tend to denigrate honors we cannot attain, fables are useful reminders of the likely unhappy consequences of giving in to these tendencies. A new element has been added to our self-reflection. But now that we have thematized it, we can resist it. Now that I know about sour grapes , I can deny its applicability.