The Dog in The Manger

The story and metaphor of The Dog in the Manger derives from an old Greek fable which has been transmitted in several different versions. Interpreted variously over the centuries, the metaphor is now used to speak of those who spitefully prevent others from having something that they themselves have no use for. Although the story was ascribed to Aesop's Fables in the 15th century, there is no ancient source that does so.

Read more about The Dog In The Manger:  Greek Origin, Later Use in Europe, The Sexual Reading, Artistic Use

Famous quotes containing the words dog and/or manger:

    This dog and man at first were friends;
    But when a pique began,
    The dog, to gain some private ends,
    Went mad and bit the man.
    Oliver Goldsmith (1730?–1774)

    The heavenly Babe you there shall find
    To human view displayed,
    All meanly wrapped in swaddling bands
    And in a manger laid.
    Nahum Tate (1652–1715)