Potter was following the pattern of fairy tales by dwelling on the theme of pursuit and prey and, if there is a moral to Potter's interpretation of the theme, it tells us that an innocent, helpless, simple, or rash animal may become someone else's meal. Potter often pointed out that the tale of Jemima was a retelling of ``Little Red Riding Hood''. Perrault's tale ends with the death of the heroine, but Potter understood children will not tolerate tragedy. The prey in her books survive for better or worse (Peter returns home for a dose of chamomile tea, for example) and, though Jemima loses her eggs to her hungry rescuers, she lives to return to the farm to raise a brood of ducklings.
Potter
Jemima