The Parable of the Talents, from The Authorized Version

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HIS lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.

Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed:* And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine.*

His lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed: Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received mine own with usury.*

Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents. For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath. And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

from The Authorized Version 1611

From Matthew 25:14-30 in the Authorised or ‘King James’ Version of the Bible, published in 1611.

* ‘Straw’ is an archaic form of ‘strew’. This servant saw his master as a hard-nosed businessman who made easy money by taking the profits others had worked for. The other two servants could have told him how mistaken he was.

* In other words, if you want your money go and dig it up.

* ‘With usury’ here means ‘with interest’. The master replied that if his servant had really believed all he was saying, he would not have dared disobey his master’s instructions in the way he did.

Précis

The two servants who did their master’s bidding were handsomely rewarded, but the man who buried his investment was severely rebuked. He protested that he had been afraid, believing his employer to be unfair in his dealings, but his employer knew he was only wicked and lazy. The money was taken from him, and he was shown the door.

Questions for Critics

1. What is the author aiming to achieve in writing this?

2. Note any words, devices or turns of phrase that strike you. How do they help the author communicate his ideas more effectively?

3. What impression does this passage make on you? How might you put that impression into words?

Based on The English Critic (1939) by NL Clay, drawing on The New Criticism: A Lecture Delivered at Columbia University, March 9, 1910, by J. E. Spingarn, Professor of Comparative Literature in Columbia University, USA.

Précis

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