French classic reading with notes The Little Prince 12

The Little Prince is a famous children's literature short story written by French writer Antoni de Saint-Exupéry in 1942. Saint-Exupéry was a French pilot born on 29 June 1900 in Lyon, France, to a traditional aristocratic family. In 1926, Saint-Exupéry joined La Teikoel Airlines. During this period, he published novels Southern Mail (1929) and Night Voyage (1931), from which he gained literary fame. In 1939, another work, "The Land of Mankind", came out. During World War II he rejoined the French Air Force. He then went to New York to begin his exile. During this period, he wrote "Air Force Pilot", "Letter to a Hostage", "The Little Prince" (1943) and other works.

The protagonist of this book is a little prince from an alien planet. With a pilot as the narrator, the book tells the story of the adventures experienced by the little prince as he sets out from his planet to Earth. With the childlike vision of the little prince, the author sees through the emptiness, blindness, stupidity and rigid dogma of adults, and writes the fate of human loneliness and loneliness without foundation and wandering with the wind in simple and innocent language. At the same time, it also expresses the author's criticism of the relationship between money and the praise of truth, goodness and beauty.

The Little Prince is an influential book that has been hailed as the second most read book ever after the Bible and has been translated into more than 100 languages. In 1994, the 50th anniversary of the author's death, the French printed his head and the image of the little prince on a 50 franc note to express their deep nostalgia.

the next planet was inhabited by a drinker. this visit was very short, but it plunged the little prince into a great melancholy:

buveur n. drunkard

"What are you doing there?" he said to the drinker, whom he found sitting silently in front of a collection of empty bottles and a collection of full bottles.

"I drink," replied the drinker, "with a gloomy look.

lugubre adj. Sad, sad

– why do you drink? the little prince asked him.

"to forget," replied the drinker.

– to forget what? inquired the little prince who was already complaining about him.

Plaindre v. Compassion, Pity

"To forget that I am ashamed," confessed the drinker, lowering his head.

– shame of what? inquired the little prince who wished to rescue him.

– shame on drinking! finished the drinker who locked himself permanently in silence.

Achever v. Finish, End

and the little prince was perplexed.

"Big people are definitely very, very weird," he said to himself during the trip.