Our society puts a lot of emphasis on teaching children to make ethical choices, but it would be difficult for any of us to determine a clear set of criteria that makes an action right or wrong each time. Read aloud video by Storytime Bunnies Guidelines for Philosophical Discussion They become very angry and surprised when Ferdinand refuses to fight.

Startled, he loses control, bucking and fussing more than anyone else! Assuming that he is a very fierce bull, the men take Ferdinand away force him into the fighting ring. When five men come to take the biggest and roughest bull away, Ferdinand stays calm and content. All the other bulls like to run and buck, but Ferdinand likes to sit under his favorite tree and smell the flowers. aggression.Ī peaceful bull lives in a pasture with his mother and other young bulls. It is a really good book.Questions for Philosophical Discussion » Summary The Story of Ferdinand raises questions about conformity, the ethical treatment of animals, and the value of peace vs. My toddler particularly likes the pictures of the five men who go to Ferdinand’s village to select bulls for the bullring. The Story of Ferdinand was written 74 years ago, just before the Spanish Civil War and is considered a pacifist book.

He is sent back home to sit under his favorite cork tree and smell the flowers.

That put an end to his career as a bull in the ring. ‘His mother saw that he was not lonesome, and because she was an understanding mother, even though she was a cow, she let him just sit there and be happy’įerdinand is picked to fight in the bull ring of Madrid.īut… When he got to the middle of the ring he saw the flowers in all the lovely ladies’ hair and he just sat down quietly and smelled. His mother, initially worried about his isolationist behavior, upon observation concludes that he is actually okay. As a young bull, Ferdinand preferred sitting under his favorite cork tree to snorting, jumping around, and butting heads with other bulls. The Story of Ferdinand, written by Munro Leaf and illustrated by Robert Lawson, is about a bull who would rather sit and smell flowers than fight in the bullfights in Madrid. We are reading the story at least 4 times a day now once in the morning, once early evening and twice at bedtime. My 3-year-old is currently obsessed with The Story of Ferdinand.

The book ferdinand