Published: 25 November 2023
“It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.”
“Le Petit Prince” is a novella written by the daring French aviator Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. It was first published in 1943 amidst WWII and has been translated into more than 250 languages and dialects.
This timeless piece of literature tells the whimsical story of an airplane pilot who finds himself stranded in the Sahara Desert after his plane crashes. The pilot eventually meets the Little Prince who visits him from the distant asteroid B-612. As the story unfolds, the two explorers embark on a philosophical journey, exploring themes of love, friendship, and the nature of the human condition.
The enchanting narrative is filled with invaluable life lessons and thought-provoking topics presented in a delightful manner, with The Little Prince himself embodying a childlike perspective.
As for the food references, they often serve as metaphors and symbols for deep philosophical concepts, going beyond mere literal nourishment. With that said, let’s embark on this culinary journey of enlightenment and indulge ourselves in the artful combination of taste and wisdom!
Did you know? At age 44, Saint-Exupéry went missing during his mission from Corsica over the Mediterranean. He is said to have been shot down by a German pilot during WWII.
Elephant
When it comes to big appetites, boa constrictors take the cake – or should I say, the whole elephant!
“My drawing was not a picture of a hat. It was a picture of a boa constrictor digesting an elephant. But since the grown-ups were not able to understand it, I made another drawing: I drew the inside of a boa constrictor, so that the grown-ups could see it clearly. They always need to have things explained.”– Chapter 1
In this particular instance, the Little Prince refers to the grown ups’ inability to see the hidden beauty and imaginative essence of the world surrounding them. This highlights the difference in perspective between children and adults, and the loss of innocence and wonder in overly pragmatic grown ups.
Drinking water
After crashing his plane, the narrator faces the pressing concern of water scarcity in chapter 2. However, the narrative takes a pivotal turn when he encounters the Little Prince, a meeting that marks the beginning of a transformative journey.
“Something was broken in my engine. And as I had with me neither a mechanic nor any passengers, I set myself to attempt the difficult repairs all alone. It was a question of life or death for me: I had scarcely enough drinking water to last a week.”– Chapter 2
Did you know? Saint-Exupéry crashed his Caudron Simoun Touring Monoplane in the Sahara desert back in 1935. According to The National WWII Museum in New Orleans, “Saint-Exupéry and his navigator had nothing but a little wine, a thermos of coffee, a couple of oranges, grapes, and a bit of chocolate with a few crackers. After four days they were nearly dead, until a desert tribesman rescued them.”
In chapter 7, the pilot’s apprehension regarding water supply heightens as he pursues his plane repairs. Meanwhile, the Little Prince, ever curious, bombards him with a multitude of questions, one of which revolves around the dietary preferences of sheep.
“At that moment I was very busy trying to unscrew a bolt that had got stuck in my engine. I was very much worried, for it was becoming clear to me that the breakdown of my plane was extremely serious. And I had so little drinking-water left that I had to fear for the worst.”– Chapter 7
The pilot drinks his last sip of water from the canteen in chapter 24 while attentively listening to the Little Prince recount his adventures.
“It was now the eighth day since I had had my accident in the desert, and I had listened to the story of the merchant as I was drinking the last drop of my water supply.”– Chapter 24
Fresh water
Parched, the beautiful flower requests some fresh water as she awakens with the sun in chapter 8.
“‘I think it is time for breakfast,’ she added an instant later. ‘If you would have the kindness to think of my needs-” And the little prince, completely abashed, went to look for a sprinkling-can of fresh water. So he tended the flower.”– Chapter 8
“And when he watered the flower for the last time, and prepared to place her under the shelter of her glass globe, he realized that he was very close to tears. ‘Goodbye,’ he said to the flower.”– Chapter 9
Fresh water is also referenced in chapter 23 when the Little Prince meets the merchant selling thirst-quenching pills. But the Little Prince is not swayed by the allure of this quick fix and expresses his appreciation for life’s simple joys.
“This was a merchant who sold pills that had been invented to quench thirst. You need only swallow one pill a week, and you would feel no need of anything to drink. ‘Why are you selling those?’ asked the little prince. ‘Because they save a tremendous amount of time,’ said the merchant. ‘Computations have ben made by experts. With these pills, you save fifty-three minutes in every week.’ ‘And what do I do with those fifty-three minutes?’ ‘Anything you like…’ ‘As for me,’ said the little prince to himself, ‘if I had fifty-three minutes to spend as I liked, I should walk at my leisure toward a spring of fresh water.“– Chapter 23
The desert can be a very unforgiving place when it comes to survival. In chapter 24, the pilot worries that he will die of thirst as repairs extend beyond expectation. So together with the Little Prince, they venture into the unknown on a quest to discover a life-saving well. This metaphorical desert symbolizes the narrator’s own mind, and the challenges and existential questions he faces as he seeks self-discovery and spiritual growth.
“‘Ah,’ I said to the little prince, ‘these memories of yours are very charming; but i have not yet succeeded in repairing my plane; I have nothing more to drink; and I, too, should be very happy if I could walk at my leisure toward a spring of fresh water!‘”– Chapter 24
In Chapter 25, their perseverance is finally rewarded as the duo catches sight of a well and joyfully quench their thirst with the refreshingly sweet water.
“I raised the bucket to his lips. He drank, his eyes closed. It was as sweet as some special festival treat. This water was indeed a different thing from ordinary nourishment. Its sweetness was born of the walk under the stars, the song of the pulley, the effort of my arms. It was good for the heart, like a present.”– Chapter 25
“‘The men where you live,’ said the little prince, ‘raise five thousand roses in the same garden – and they do not find in it what they are looking for.’ ‘They do not find it,’ I replied. ‘And yet what they are looking for could be found in one single rose, or in a little water.’ ‘Yes, that is true,’ I said. And the little prince added: ‘But the eyes are blind. One must look with the heart…'”– Chapter 25
In chapter 26, after a perilous encounter with a snake, the Little Prince is reunited with the pilot, who provides him with water.
“‘What does this mean?’ I demanded. ‘Why are you talking with snakes?’ I had loosened the golden muffler that he always wore. I had moistened his temples, and had given him some water to drink. And now I did not dare ask him any more questions. He looked at me very gravely, and put his arms around my neck. I felt his heart beating like the heart of a dying bird, shot with someone’s rifle…”– Chapter 26
The pilot eventually likens the Little Prince’s laughter to a refreshing sip of fresh water, emphasizing how the Little Prince’s cheerful spirit rejuvenates him like a drink of cool, clear water in the desert of life.
“Once again I felt myself frozen by the sense of something irreparable. And I knew that I could not bear the thought of never hearing that laughter any more. For me, it was like a spring of fresh water in the desert.“– Chapter 26
And in chapter 26, stars are compared to magical wells, with each star becoming a source of fascination and wonder, a well brimming with untold stories and cosmic secrets.
“‘You know, it will be very nice. I, too, shall look at the stars. All the stars will be wells with a rusty pulley. All the stars will pour out fresh water for me to drink…‘ I said nothing. ‘That will be so amusing! You will have five hundred million little bells, and I shall have five hundred million springs of fresh water…‘”– Chapter 26
Grass, Little Bushes & Flowers
When the narrator encounters the Little Prince in the Sahara Desert, the latter immediately asks for a drawing of a sheep, a.k.a nature’s lawnmowers.
“‘This is only his box. The sheep you asked for is inside.’ I was very surprised to see a light break over the face of my young judge: ‘That is exactly the way I wanted it! Do you think that this sheep will have to have a great deal of grass?’ ‘Why?’ ‘Because where I live everything is very small…’ ‘There will surely be enough grass for him,’ I said. ‘It is a very small sheep that I have given you.'”– Chapter 2
“This time, once more, I had the sheep to thank for it. For the little prince asked me abruptly – as if seized by a grave doubt – ‘It is true, isn’t it, that sheep eat little bushes?’“– Chapter 5
“‘A sheep – if it eats little bushes, does it eat flowers, too?’ ‘A sheep,’ I answered, ‘eats anything it finds in its reach.’ ‘Even flowers that have thorns?’ ‘Yes, even flowers that have thorns.'”– Chapter 7
“‘If some one loves a flower, of which just one single blossom grows in all the millions and millions of stars, it is enough to make him happy just to look at the stars. He can say to himself, ‘Somewhere, my flower is there…’ But if the sheep eats the flower, in one moment all his stars will be darkened…And you think that is not important!'”– Chapter 7
“For you who also love the little prince, and for me, nothing in the universe can be the same if somewhere, we do not know where, a sheep that we never saw has- yes or no? – eaten a rose… Look up at the sky. Ask yourselves: is it yes or no? Has the sheep eaten the flower? And you will see how everything changes… And no grown-up will ever understand that this is a matter of so much importance!”– Chapter 27
Baobabs
Baobabs, also known as “upside-down trees”, are native to Africa. They have a very distinctive appearance and can be recognized by their massive, swollen trunks that can store large amounts of water. Baobabs are mentioned for the first time in chapter 5.
“I did not understand why it was so important that sheep should eat little bushes. But the little prince added: ‘Then it follows that they also eat baobabs?‘ I pointed out to the little prince that baobabs were not little bushes, but, on the contrary, trees as big as castles; and that even if he took a whole herd of elephants away with him, the herd would not eat up one single baobab.“– Chapter 5
“‘But why do you want the sheep to eat the little baobabs?’ He answered me at once, ‘Oh, come, come!, as if he were speaking of something that was self-evident.”– Chapter 5
Introducing baobabs to non-native regions carries the risk of them becoming invasive, displacing native vegetation and posing a threat to local biodiversity. In “The Little Prince”, the baobab conveys an important lesson about the dangers of neglect and the importance of addressing issues early on, before they grow out of control.
“Now there were some terrible seeds on the planet that was the home of the little prince; and these were the seeds of the baobab. The soil of that planet was infested with them. A baobab is something you will never, never be able to get rid of if you attend to it too late. It spreads over the entire planet. It bores clear through it with its roots. And if the planet is too small, and the baobabs are too many, they split it in pieces…”– Chapter 5
“‘It is a question of discipline,’ the little prince said to me later on. ‘When you’ve finished your own toilet in the morning, then it is time to attend to the toilet of your planet, just so, with the greatest care. You must see to it that you pull up regularly all the baobabs, at the very first moment when they can be distinguished from the rose-bushes which they resemble so closely in their earliest youth. It is very tedious work,’ the little prince added, ‘but very easy.'”– Chapter 5
Mushroom
Disclaimer: this mushroom is not for eating!
“‘I know a planet where there is a certain red-faced gentleman. He has never smelled a flower. He has never looked at a star. He has never loved any one. He has never done anything in his life but add up figures. And all day he says over and over, just like you: ‘I am busy with matters of consequence!’ And that makes him swell up with pride. But he is not a man- he is a mushroom!’“– Chapter 7
Weeds
What are flower thorns for if not to scare off the tigers?
“‘Let the tigers come with their claws!’ ‘There are no tigers on my planer,’ the little prince objected. ‘And, anyway, tigers do not eat weeds.’ ‘I am not a weed,’ the flower replied, sweetly. ‘Please excuse me…'”– Chapter 8
Alcohol
In chapter 12, the Little Prince discovers a planet inhabited by a tippler. This encounter emphasizes the destructive nature of escapism and how grown-ups sometimes deceive themselves in order to avoid facing life’s challenges.
“‘What are you doing there?’ he said to the tippler, whom he found settled down in silence before a collection of empty bottles and also a collection of full bottles. ‘I am drinking,’ replied the tippler, with a lugubrious air. ‘Why are you drinking?’ demanded the little prince. ‘So that I may forget,’ replied the tippler. ‘Forget what?’ inquired the little prince, who already was sorry for him. ‘Forget that I am ashamed,’ the tippler confessed, hanging his head. ‘Ashamed of what?’ insisted the little prince, who wanted to help him. ‘Ashamed of drinking!'”– Chapter 12
Alcohol is mentioned once more in chapter 15 when the Prince meets the geographer on the sixth planet.
“‘The geographer is much too important to go loafing about. He does not leave his desk. But he receives the explorers in his study. He asks them questions, and he notes down what they recall of their travels. And if the recollections of any one among them seem interesting to him, the geographer orders an inquiry into that explorer’s moral character.’ ‘Why is that?’ ‘Because an explorer who told lies would bring disaster on the books of the geographer. So would an explorer who drank too much.’ ‘Why is that?’ asked the little prince. ‘Because intoxicated men see double. Then the geographer would note down two mountains in a place where there was only one.'”– Chapter 15
Apple tree
No fairy tale is complete without some sort of apple cameo! In chapter 21, the Little Prince meets the fox under the apple tree.
“It was then that the fox appeared. ‘Good morning,’ said the fox. ‘Good morning,’ the little prince responded politely, although when he turned around he saw nothing. ‘I am right here,’ the voice said. ‘under the apple tree.’“– Chapter 21
Chickens
The fox longs for a world free from hunters, where chickens roam aplenty. Regrettably, the Little Prince’s planet lacks both…
“‘Are there hunters on that planet?’ ‘No.’ ‘Ah, that is interesting! Are there chickens?’ ‘No’ ‘Nothing is perfect,’ sighed the fox. But he came back to his idea. ‘My life is very monotonous,’ the fox said, ‘I hunt chickens; men hunt me. All the chickens are just alike, and all the men are just alike. And, in consequence, I am a little bored. But if you tame me, it will be as if the sun came to shine on my life. I shall know the sound of a step that will be different from all the others. Other steps send me hurrying back underneath the ground. Yours will call me, like music, out of my burrow.”– Chapter 21
Wheat/Bread
Deeper and more meaningful human connections are explored in chapter 21 as the fox persists in his desire for the Little Prince to tame him.
“And then look: you see the grain-fields down yonder? I do not eat bread. Wheat is of no use to me. The wheat fields have nothing to say to me. And that is sad. But you have hair that is the color of gold. Think how wonderful that will be when you have tamed me! The grain, which is also golden, will bring me back the thought of you. And I shall love to listen to the wind in the wheat…'”– Chapter 21
Despite being saddened by the Little Prince’s departure, the fox remains grateful for their special friendship and goes as far as seeing beauty in a crop he once viewed as mundane.
“So the little prince tamed the fox. And when the hour of his departure drew near – ‘Ah,’ said the fox, ‘I shall cry.’ ‘It is your own fault,’ said the little prince. ‘I never wished you any sort of harm but you wanted me to tame you…’ ‘Yes, that is so,’ said the fox. ‘But now you are going to cry!’ said the little prince. ‘Yes, that is so,’ said the fox. ‘Then it has done you no good at all!’ ‘It has done me good,’ said the fox, ‘because of the color of the wheat fields.’“– Chapter 21
Vineyards
In the midst of their heartfelt conversations in chapter 21, the fox mentions to the Little Prince the vineyards owned by the hunters, which he is able to reach on Thursdays when the men and women are busy dancing.
“There is a rite, for example, among my hunters. Every Thursday they dance with the village girls. So Thursday is a wonderful day for me! I can take a walk as far as the vineyards. But if the hunters danced at just any time, every day would be like every other day, and I should never have any vacation at all.'”– Chapter 21
Honey
In chapter 25, the pilot reflects on the beauty of the desert and its hues of honey.
“I had drink the water. I breathed easily. At sunrise the sand is the color of honey. And that honey color was making me happy, too. What brought me, then, this sense of grief?”– Chapter 25
Cabbages
Baobabs and cabbages don’t have much in common at all. But then again, the Little Prince is known for his playful and humorous interactions.
“I took my rough drafts of drawings out of my pocket. The little prince looked them over, and laughed as he said: ‘Your baobabs- they look a little like cabbages.‘”– Chapter 25
