Aesop's, EE sops, fables are a collection of stories attributed to a Greek slave named Aesop, who died about 565 B.C. Like all fables, each of these tales teaches a moral and offers useful advice. Most of the characters in Aesop's fables are animals that talk and act like humans. They show the failings and virtues of human nature in a simple, humorous way. Each fable ends with a proverb that sums up the fable's moral and advice.