Case Study from the year 2020 in the subject English Language and Literature Studies - Literature, grade: 1,3, University of Kassel, language: English, abstract: Animals have played a major role in literature for thousands of years. At first, animals were used to underline religious or allegorical significance in literary texts. Aesop’s Fables, for example, are about talking animals and plants and often convey a moral message at the end. These fables have served as guidelines for people for almost three thousand years. In modern times, Ted Hughes is considered one of the most influential English poets of the second half of the twentieth century, particularly due to the impressive animal imageries he created. Hughes’ writing career started in 1957 when his collection of 40 poems named “The Haw in the Rain” was published.