About.com defines "cautionary tale" as "a traditional narrative, e.g., a fable, proverb, or urban legend with a moral message warning of the consequences of certain actions, inactions, or character flaws," and cites the following example: "King Midas is a cautionary tale demonstrating the pitfalls of unbridled greed."
To most of us, King Midas represents "the man with the golden touch," but the power bestowed upon him by the gods had a negative side. Yes, it turned simple twigs and stones into valuable gold, but it also turned his food, water and even his lovely daughter into the hard, cold metal, illustrating the lesson all of us must learn at some point in life: Anything taken to extremes can have unintended consequences and often leads to serious problems.
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