some of the expressions to take from the Fable de Jean De La Fontaine, are laisser tomber -to let go, valoir bien – to be well-worth-as well as related expressions such as valoir le coup, valoir la peine -both meaning worth the trouble.

Please remember that all written form in French, whether dealing with newspapers or fables or books is written in the Passe Simple which you will learn at a later date. The Passe Simple has the exact same meaning as the Passe Compose but is formed differently. In French we do not use the Passe Simple in spoken form only in writing.

In essence, the Renard flatters the Corbeau’s voice and fools him into letting him drop the cheese he held. But in his cunning way, he tells him that he did that to teach the Corbeau a lesson, rather than admitting that he fooled him.