More Fables — Reading Notes

The Architecture of the Fable

Each fable in More Fables follows a consistent structural pattern: a title announcing the moral target, a brief scene-setting paragraph, dialogue-heavy action, and a capitalized MORAL at the end. The titles themselves are miniature plots—"The Fable of How Uncle Brewster was Too Shifty for the Tempter" or "The Fable of the Cruel Insult and the Arrival of the Lover from No. 6." Within the narrative, Ade often inserts a paragraph of authorial commentary, signaled by a shift to present tense or a direct address to the reader. For instance, after describing the Joker who salts a mine, he notes that "He certainly had a Sunny Disposition" before the punchline. This blend of reported action and wry aside creates a rhythm of setup, complication, and deflation.

Recurring Images and Props

Ade populates his fables with a small repertoire of objects that recur across stories: the hotel dining room with its "Sail Cloth" table cover and "Corroded Caster," the train journey with its "Baby Mine Cigar" and brakeman jokes, the small-town depot as a threshold to adventure or humiliation. These props are not merely decorative; they anchor the fables in a recognizable American landscape of the 1890s. The electric lights that mark the city's "Lively Show" contrast with the rural setting of Uncle Brewster's farm. The "Keg of Nails" tied to the Joker's feet in the Montana fable literalizes the weight of a joke gone wrong. By repeating such images, Ade builds a consistent world where objects carry moral weight.

Dialect and Vocal Characterization

Ade's characters are defined by their speech—not through phonetic transcription but through capitalized nouns, malapropisms, and rhythmic patterns. Uncle Brewster declares, "I guess I can take keer of myse'f about as well as the Next One," while the English Tourist speaks in stiff, formal phrases: "I should like a Rasher of Bacon, and have it Jolly Well Done." The waitress's rapid-fire utterance "Beefsteakliverhamand" compresses an entire menu into a single word, signaling her indifference. The Advance Agent, a smooth talker, uses theatrical jargon ("Winsome and Chic") to flatter and manipulate. These vocal tics are not just comic; they reveal social status, regional origin, and moral character. The fable's moral often hinges on a character's inability to read another's tone—as when the Joker's mirth is met with literal violence.

Movement Between Scenes

The fables frequently move characters from one setting to another, using travel as a device to expose them to new temptations or dangers. Uncle Brewster rides the train to the city, where he encounters the theater and its inflated prices. The Joker travels from an unnamed manufacturing suburb to Montana, where his urban tricks fail. The English Tourist and the Advance Agent meet at a junction hotel, a transient space where social rules are suspended. These shifts are often abrupt, signaled by a paragraph break and a new location heading (e.g., "MANUFACTURING SUBURB"). The journey itself is rarely described; what matters is the contrast between the familiar and the foreign, and the comic or disastrous consequences of that encounter. Ade uses movement to test his characters' assumptions, often with brutal results.

Readers approaching More Fables will find a collection that rewards attention to its verbal and structural patterns rather than sustained plot. Each fable is self-contained, best read singly or in small groups to appreciate Ade's variations on his formula. The morals, while often cynical, are delivered with a deadpan humor that undercuts any preachiness. Pay particular attention to the way Ade uses capitalization and punctuation to mimic speech rhythms—this is a key part of his comic technique.

That rainy afternoon, Ade’s rustics and city slickers kept tripping over their own vanity, and his little morals left me smiling—not laughing, just nodding. Afterwards, restless, I reached for something lighter on the shelf, and landed on the newer collection of essays about vaudeville and show business. It felt like the same sly wink, but with a keener eye for art—The Seven Lively Arts — Story, Setting & Ideas—and I lost the rest of the afternoon to it.