Après La Fête

In a cornfield, grasshoppers devour ripe kernels on a cob. A bird appears and gobbles up the insects. A man arrives. He thinks he’s caught the bird eating the grain. Furious, he runs back to the village to warn the other inhabitants.

Rumour and anger spreads among the villagers: there was no way they were going to let these parasites steal the fruits of their labour! Everyone agrees to kill them and rid the fields of the vermin. The crowd goes wild, slaughtering the birds and then celebrating their victory.

The next day, in the absence of their predator, the grasshoppers ravage the cornfields. A village woman witnesses the scene. Furious, she runs back to the village to warn the other inhabitants.