Contoh Narrative Text

Cerita Rakyat Bali "Musang dan Ayam Gundul" (Bahasa Inggris)

The Civet and the Bald Chicken

            Civets are well known among the Balinese for being crafty hunters of chicken. Chicken know that they make a tasty meal for civets. But in this case there was an unusual association between a bald chicken and a civet. The civet was the good protector and care of the chicken. Like wish, the chicken was quite at ease in the company of the civet. Their friendship was very close and peaceful even though we don’t know what the civet was really thinking. Was the friendship all about the chicken still being bald, and the civet was looking after the chicken merely to make it grow quickly, get feathers and so develop nice-tasting flesh? Even so, the bald chicken didn’t give any hint that it was concerned, unlike other chickens which, had they been approached by the civet, would most certainly have run away to avoid being gobbled up. Or perhaps the chicken thought she was too young to protect itself from danger: “Things are fine for the moment, and later when I am fully fledged I’ll be able to look after myself”—was this the case? So far the friendship had been going just fine, without any mutual suspicion. This went on for quite a while, for some months, until the chicken was not bald anymore. Her feathers were thickening and she was getting fat—about two kilograms in weight. They each began to have ill-feelings towards each other. The civet’s eyes would glow when he saw how fat and pretty the chicken was getting. The chicken also started to become aware of the civet’s every movement, and no longer allowed it to get close. She started glance around, left and light, and if anything happened she would fly away high. She started to roost in the higher tree branches. Such was the behavior of the chicken that was no longer bald (but actually pretty). So, how did things turn out? One night, the civet planned to attack the no-longer-bad chicken, because he knew quite well that under those beautiful feathers there was some exceedingly delicious meat. But the chicken, no less, had been doing some clear thinking. This was very night she had been waiting for to fly far away from danger. The chicken was extremely alert and ready to get away as far as she could. So, in fact, both got themselves ready that evening: that which was suspected and that which was planned in fact happened. The civet with his sharp eyes and nimble legs pounced: “where are you, chicken?” the answer came: “I am here, not far from you”, while little by little she moved further away. The civet heard some movement: “What was that? Oh, it’s nothing, maybe some dry leaves are falling”. But needless to say, the chicken up and away into the darkness of the night, further and further away. The civet regretted that his ruse of looking after the chicken for months and months, in order to make a delicious meal of it, failed because the chicken his bad intentions. A thus ends this story: a happy ending for the chicken but a sad ending for the civet.

Moral: Guard against the danger that always shadows us. Don’t let up even a little.