in matters of literature, an ingenious method of conveying instruction by means of a feigned relation called a moral fable.

The only difference between a parable and an apologue is, that the former, being drawn from what passes among mankind, requires probability in the narration; whereas the apologue, being taken from the supposed actions of brutes, or even of things inanimate, is not tied down to the strict rules of probability, Æsop's fables are a model of this kind of writing.