Fabel van de vlieg en de muilezel 1769

Simon Fokke made this etching of the fable of the fly and the mule in the 18th century. It represents a moment in which the powerless can believe in their influence. The etching shows a mule cart on a journey. It is driven by a man, and according to the fable, a fly is perched on the neck of one of the mules. The fly thinks it is helping to pull the cart by biting the mule, and therefore taking credit for the cart's progress. The Fable speaks to the relationship between labor and capital. The fly is not doing any work, yet it believes it is responsible for the movement of the cart. Fokke's etching invites us to consider questions of value and contribution. What does it mean to claim responsibility for something one did not truly do? How do we measure the real efforts of labor?