In La Fontaine's Fables, where the fable appears as L'avare qui a perdu son trésor (IV.20), the story is made the occasion for a meditation on the nature of ownership. It begins with the statement 'Possessions have no value till we use them' and uses the story as an illustration of someone who is owned by the gold rather than being its owner.The Complete Fables of Jean de La Fontaine, translated by Norman Shapiro, University of Illinois 2007, p.101 In Germany, Gotthold Ephraim Lessing gave the ending an additional twist in his retelling. What drives the miser to distraction, in addition to his loss, is that someone else is the richer for it.Fables and Epigrams of Lessing translated from the German, London 1825, Fable 14
