The Little Prince

The Little Prince is a philosophical book written by Antoine de Saint-Exupery.

Symbolism

Stars

Since the narrator is a pilot, he looks onto earth for navigation purposes. After the Pilot meets the little Prince, he learns that the prince lives among them. So, the stars also represent friendship. The stars in The Little Prince also symbolize the mystery of the universe, and at the end, the loneliness of the narrator’s life. In his final drawing, he draws one lone star shining down onto the desert.

The snow

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Desert

The novel's setting is in the Sahara Desert. This desert is barren, and is ready to be transformed. Therefore, the desert represents the narrators mind, because it was made barren by grown-up ideas. Like the Sahara Desert, the narrator's mind is transformed, by the little Prince. This landscape was sad for the protagonist.

Water

The water in the well symbolizes spiritual fear of dying. It is also a symbol of life.

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Most of the characters in the book are highly symbolic. They are not named.

King

Is depicted a self-centered person who thinks highly of himself. However, this superiority brings only loneliness to him and causes people, like the little Prince to leave him. He thinks he knows everything and possesses everything, but in truth, he is very ignorant of the world beyond his miniature planet. The King represents people in our society who thinks of themselves as superior beings. They don't listen to other's opinions and disregard the consequences of their actions. In the end, all they get is disrespect instead of the respect that they believe they should have.'

The Clown (Vain Man)

The Clown, like the King, is also very conceited. However, unlike the King, he is so self-indulged that he lives his life looking for admirers. The Clown is like a blind person who cannot see the beauty of the world because he is so focused on himself. He also does not recognize faults within himself because he's so self-absorbed. For a person to be respected and admired, one needs to contribute to the world or to make a difference in someone's life. The Clown does neither. He is living a life that is meaningless and full of lies because he fully believes that he's the most wonderful person in the world, even though he did nothing to build his reputation. Hence, One cannot judge a person by their appearance or by the way they talk. One can only judge a person by the things they do and don't do. He is vain and conceited.

The Flower

Flowers blossom from tiny sprouts which grow from tiny seeds under the earth. Throughout the life of a flower, it changes and grows and blossoms. The flower in the story grows like this too, except she grows to becoming more mature and caring. At the beginning she nags the little prince all the time and orders him to do stuff for her. She's seems very conceited, but when the little Prince leaves, she feels very sad and thinks that it is her fault that the little Prince is leaving. The flower to the Prince, is the treasure and the "essential" that one can only see with the heart. He finally learns to appreciate her because he has lost her. The flower can be compared to mothers. Mothers nag their children all the time to pick their clothes, make the bed, take the trash out, and perform different duties. However, their intentions are good. They care deeply for their children and keep a roof over their children's heads even though they might seem unfair or annoying at times. It is when we lose our moms, that we will realize their importance in our lives.

The Little Prince

The Little Prince represents innocence, ignorance, purity, and stupidity. When the Prince goes to visit the people on the planets, he cannot understand them and thinks that they are very bizarre. He wonders why the Businessman counts the stars because he doesn't do anything with them except "possess" them. He also does not understand why his Flower is "ephemeral", and that he will lose her one day because she will die. These truths remain unclear throughout his journey because he is innocent. He cannot see the reality of the world around him, nor can he understand the mind of the adults. When he meets the Snake, the Snake does not bite him because he is so pure. The Little Prince does not know the dangers that a snake represents and so he talks to it just like he did to the Fox. His mind is unadulterated by evil, money, and greed like the mind of adults are. Furthermore, he can see what adults don't. For example, he finally understands the importance of the flower to him because she is unique to him and he is to her. Hence, he must protect and care for her. Adults don't understand things like this: they don't know why a flower would ever be as important as money or fame, nor would they care if a flower died and the stars cried. The Prince brings back childhood memories into the life of the narrator that he has long forgotten. He teaches the narrator to be responsible for those you love and have tamed, and to be yourself even though no one is listening to you. The little prince also teaches us that the best things in the world aren't necessarily the most expensive, the rarest, the fanciest, but the things that we see and can enjoy everyday like friends and family.

The Businessman

The Businessman represents the perfect adult because his mind is only occupied by numbers. As we grow up, our interests change because of what society demands of us. We must take responsibility and earn a living. Hence, we can no longer be a child and play with toys or play on playground.

The Tippler

The tippler,or the drunkard is a man who drinks because he is ashamed of drinking!! It's a vicious cycle that goes on forever...such men are seen in real life. 

The Geographer

Why is it that the geographer speaks and records about these adventures, but never lives them?

The geographer speaks of all this stuff involving geography but claims that he is a geographer not an explorer, therefore it is not "his" job to explore his planet.