What a splendid head, yet no brain

What a splendid head, yet no brain

In the world of Aesop's fables, the phrase "What a splendid head, yet no brain" could be interpreted in a variety of ways. Aesop was a Greek storyteller known for his fables, which often featured animals as characters and imparted moral lessons. This particular phrase could be used to describe a character in one of Aesop's fables who appears to be intelligent or impressive on the surface, but lacks true wisdom or common sense.

One possible interpretation of this phrase could be found in the fable of "The Fox and the Crow." In this story, a crow is perched in a tree with a piece of cheese in its beak. A fox sees the cheese and flatters the crow, telling it what a beautiful voice it must have. The crow, eager to prove the fox right, opens its beak to caw, dropping the cheese in the process. The fox then snatches up the cheese and runs off, leaving the crow to rue its foolishness.

In this fable, the crow could be seen as having a "splendid head" in the form of its beautiful feathers and impressive voice. However, it lacks the wisdom to see through the fox's flattery and ends up losing its prize as a result. The crow's lack of true intelligence or discernment could be seen as a case of having a splendid head, yet no brain.

Another possible interpretation of this phrase could be found in the fable of "The Tortoise and the Hare." In this story, a boastful hare challenges a slow-moving tortoise to a race. The hare, confident in its speed, takes a nap during the race while the tortoise plods steadily along. In the end, the tortoise wins the race, proving that slow and steady wins the race.