While a little fun is essential for a happy life, wise individuals know that prosperity begins with hard work. Gary and the other grasshoppers want to play all day, and they cannot understand why the ants work so hard and miss all the fun. Alex and the ants know they must work during the spring to have food for the winter.

Androcles lives a miserable life as the slave of a cruel and unjust master. Even though runaway slaves face the death penalty, he flees to the nearby woods. There Androcles delights in his new-found freedom. He also makes an unusual friend: a lion with an injured paw. The two live together happily, but the lion gets captured, and shortly afterwards Androcles, too. Androcles is punished by being fed to a lion.

The miller Elmo and his son Mort have a problem—instead of standing up for what they know is right, they follow everyone else’s opinions. When a farmer complains that Elmo is overworking the donkey, Elmo and Mort mill the grain. When others complain that his prices are too high, Elmo reduces the price, even if he’s losing money. When a friend suggests Mort steal apples with him, Mort goes along with the plan.

Little Red Riding Hood is a kind-hearted girl on her way to help her sick grandmother. Her mother warns her not to speak to strangers and to stay on the path as she travels through the forest, but a smooth-talking wolf makes Little Red Riding Hood forget her promise. While Little Red Riding Hood gathers flowers for her grandmother, the wolf uses her delay to devour the grandmother and set a trap for Little Red Riding Hood.