Summary

Analysis of The Little Prince

Literary Analysis of The Little Prince “Matters of consequence”, what exactly are they? A dictionary definition of this term would be what is of value in the world. Antoine St. Exupery explains what he thinks are true “matters of consequence” in his satire, The Little Prince. In the story the Little Prince states, “Only children know what they are looking for…They waste their time over a rag doll and it becomes important to them…” (page 89). What this quote means is that only children know what true “matters of consequence” are. We know the author believes this because he dedicated the book, “To Leon Werth, when he was a little boy.” It implies that children appreciate the simple things and that they take time to live in the moment. There are three characters in the book that speak for the author. The pilot is a likely spokesperson because he, like the author, is a pilot, and he also sympathizes with children because he does not fit in with “grownups”, like the author. The pilot is presented sympathetically; he is not made an object of ridicule like the businessman, geographer, etc. who are made to appear ridiculous. The Little Prince also speaks for the author because he is naïve and childlike. The pilot, who is already established as a spokesperson for the author, loves the Little Prince; he is also presented sympathetically like the pilot. There is an incident in which the Little Prince meets a merchant who is selling water pills. These pills were made to save people fifty-three minutes a week that they would normally spend drinking water. The Little Prince questions this and says that he would much rather use those minutes to go to the well and drink the water. This incident shows the fact that something as simple as drinking should be enjoyed. The Little Prince believes that people should live in the moment of things. The author opens the book talking about the differences betwe...