i read a book! (#2): The Little Prince - Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
⚠️ Spoilers ahead!
About the Book
The Little Prince is a fable and modern classic, written from the point of view of a man who has crash-landed in a desert and encounters a small boy, the little prince. The little prince is a child who comes from an asteroid in space, and he travels the universe gaining wisdom where he one day comes to Earth.
my thoughts:
my initial thoughts upon reading the book were that it had just the right balance of whimsy and deep meaning for my taste.
i can see why it is a classic loved by many.
while i would love to go into a very sophisticated, intellectual analysis, i'm afraid it has been so long since i've really read books and took the time to analyze them.
i used to excel in english in school but all those skills are buried under years of piled up dust it seems.
so what i would mainly like to talk about is how the book made me think about childhood, the inner child, and adulthood.
i feel that i grew up too quickly.
starting from a young age i watched my parents argue over household duties, finances, etc.
they projected a lot of their thoughts and frustrations from their regrets onto me, and i learned about the world way earlier than any child would have liked.
i was also forced to spend most of my time learning and/or studying, so i just never really got to be a child.
i think this is why sometimes, i feel the sorrow from my inner child.
my inner child is scared of making mistakes, getting in trouble, and allowing herself to enjoy free time.
the narrator regrets sort of losing his imaginative skills and becoming a grown-up.
one of my favorite things that he says is, "I have spent lots of time with grown-ups. I have seen them at close-range... which hasn't much improved my opinion of them."
agreed.
it made me feel that i don't want to become that bitter adult in the future and i want to be kinder to my inner child, and figure out how to let her heal.
the book also talks about how the imaginations of children are quickly shut down by adults, as seen in the first chapter when the narrator draws a boa constrictor with an elephant inside, but the adults can only see a hat.
when he draws the elephant inside the boa constrictor, the adults tell him to focus more on studies such as mathematics and grammar instead of silly ideas.
but imagination is so important!
imagination helps children learn about the world, gain wisdom (as the little prince did throughout his travels), and express themselves better.
another interesting thing that came to mind was how lately, our generation is very much into things that they were into as a child, or similar interests.
i still love collecting stuffed animals and cute figurines, and my friends and i love to watch "cartoons" where people beat each other up with magic powers.
my parents would think this is all extremely childish and not age-appropriate.
i don't know if it's something generational, or maybe even something to do with how my parents are immigrants, but they don't find childlike wonder in many things.
as i just mentioned, they still question why i have stuffed animals on my bed, or why i love stickers and decorating my belongings.
but reading this book made me realize that even as i grow older (because technically i'm already an adult i guess) i don't want to lose that childlike wonder.
one of my favorite sections that i took a picture of says:
"Grown-ups like numbers. When you tell them about a new friend, they never ask questions about what really matters. They never ask: 'What does his voice sound like?' 'What games does he like best?' 'Does he collect butterflies?' They ask: 'How old is he?' 'How many brothers does he have?' 'How much does he weigh?' 'How much money does his father make?' Only then do they think they know him."
i almost screamed when i read this part.
this is exactly what my mom does when i mention my friends!
it used to be more of, "how are their grades? are they smart? what do their parents do?" but now it's, "what do they do for a living? how much do they make? how old are they?"
but mom, those are not the most important parts of a person.
my favorite line from the book is probably this one:
"Here is my secret. It's quite simple: One sees clearly only with the heart. Anything essential is invisible to the eyes."
i really like this quote because i feel it is important to live and treat yourself and others with heart-first thinking, if that makes sense.
people are not machines that operate on numbers, but we think and feel, and we function based on emotions, desires, and thoughts.
thanks for reading my jumbled thoughts!