The Scorpion and the Frog

The frog carrying the scorpion across the water

The Scorpion and the Frog is a fable. The Scorpion and the Frog was first found in Lev Nitoburg's 1933 novel The German Quarter.

The fable is about a scorpion who wants to get across a river. The scorpion sees a frog and asks the frog if he can carry him across. The frog is worried about this because he doesn't want to be stung. The scorpion then assures the frog that he would not sting him because that would result in the death of both of them. The frog then agrees and helps the scorpion across the river. When they are halfway across the river, the scorpion decides to sting the frog. The frog asks why and the scorpion responds that couldn't resist because it was in his nature.

A common belief of the moral of the fable is that even if it is against their own interests, a violent person will hurt others anyways because they can't help it.