The Little Red Hen – مرغ سرخ پاکوتاه

Little Red Hen is a time-tested cautionary tale about how we reap what we sow. When the hen asks a cat, dog, and duck for help planting some wheat, she gets no takers: “‘Not I!’ said the cat. ‘Not I!’ said the dog. ‘Not I!’ said the duck.” They won’t water, cut, or grind the wheat . . . or help bake bread with it, either. So guess who eats the cake by herself in the end?

In Iran, Little Red Hen was first organized by “Parvin Dolatabadi,” a famous children’s poet, in 1349 and was published with the illustration of “Arapik Baghdasarian.” In this poem, the poet praises the essence of existence, work, effort and cooperation and condemns laziness. In addition to this poetic story, she also tells the process of making bread to children.