Thursday, May 10, 2007

Le Petit Prince

I have begun reading for the upteenth time, The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. Originally written in French in 1943, there's always been a debate whether this is a children's book or a children's book written for adults. I tend to believe the latter. Having read it for the first time in my early college years at about age 19, it was a life-changing experience- REALLY! (I was also reading Alan Watts and Krishnamurti at this time-ahhhh, those were the days!)

Basically, a pilot crashes in the Sahara Desert and meets an extra-terrestrial -the Little Prince- from planet B612, but the powerful essence of the whole story is spoken by the fox (my favorite character) to the Little Prince: "On ne voit bien qu'avec le cœur, l'essentiel est invisible pour les yeux" = "It is only with the heart that one can see rightly, what is essential is invisible to the eye." The first time I read that it BLEW MY MIND!

If you haven't read it, check it out at your local public library. If you have read it, read it again this summer, you won't be sorry.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Personally, I see things from the perspective that the heart can and will deceive you. I think most people operate better using common sense, reason, and logic. I still very firmly believe in using the heart to ultimately temper my decisions.

I don't know how much trust I'd put in the wily philosophies of a Fox. You do know about foxes and hen houses don't you? :o)