It is a short novel by French writer and aviator Antoine de Saint-Exupery, who died in a plane crash at the age of 44 during World War II. His best known work was, without a doubt, “The Little Prince”, which was published precisely a year before his death. It is a novel written in a simple style, with direct dialogues, abundant poetic features and full of symbolism. Little Prince
This novel, considered by some to be a children’s story, is a classic of world literature. It has been translated into over 180 languages and taken to the movies on several occasions.
The story is told of an aviator who has an accident in the middle of the desert and needs to repair his plane to continue his journey
Unexpectedly, the aviator meets a boy (the little prince) who comes from a strange planet and between them a close friendship quickly emerges. The boy is on Earth because he needs to reflect on some issues that concern him, such as his relationship with a flower and which he cannot live in harmony.
Symbolic elements
Each element or character in “The Little Prince” has a symbolic value and an associated message. The boy represents purity and ingenuity and, at the same time, the search for authentic wisdom in human beings. The aviator is an adult who would like to retrieve the child inside him. For some scholars the character of the little prince represents what we would like to be and the aviator symbolizes what we really are. In the story there are other protagonists and elements.
- – The King represents the ambition for power;
- – The drunk symbolizes the false evasion of pleasure;
- – The vain is a show of personal isolation of the human being;
- – The lighthouse keeper is an individual who self-destructs through routine and expresses the inner struggle between duty and individual freedom ;
- – The geographer symbolizes the wise man who closes in on himself;
- – The fox is a character that helps the little prince to know reality ;
- – The flower is simply love.
Other elements also have a symbolic value, such as the box, the lamb and the baobabs.
What can we learn from this novel?
It can be said that “The Little Prince” is a manifesto about human values, which addresses universal ideals and values such as solidarity , friendship, kindness and the search for true inner knowledge.
Finally, it is a reflection on the human condition and happiness.
