The Little Prince - Teaching Children Philosophy - Prindle Institute 19.02.

2022 00:08

The Little Prince

by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

FILTERS: MIND , REALITY , GRADE-3-5 , GRADE-5-AND-UP

BOOK MODULE NAVIGATION

Summary »
Guidelines for Philosophical Discussion »
Questions for Philosophical Discussion »

Summary

The Little Prince introduces a variety of

philosophical concepts including authority,
loneliness, and ownership.
An aviator whose plane is forced down in the Sahara Desert encounters a
little boy– a prince–from a small planet. The boy recounts his space travel
adventures and search for the secret of what is important in life.

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Guidelines for Philosophical Discussion

Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s enduring classic The Little Prince offers a longer,
more advanced story through which to engage children in philosophical
discussion. The author’s personal experiences as a pilot who was once
stranded in the desert lend this story a uniquely accessible element. The pilot’s
realistic struggle with his harsh environment juxtaposed to his poignant
appreciation for its natural beauty comes from first-hand experience, from
which Saint-Exupéry certainly drew. This grounding of the supernatural in
real life will provide children with a framework to contemplate the
extraordinary.

Through the travels and travails of the little prince, one encounters open-
ended philosophical concepts such as ‘authority,’ ‘ephemerality,’ and
‘loneliness.’ The reader is invited to contemplate opposing definitions of
ownership, contrasting the concept of possession from the Little Prince’s
responsibility-based ideal to the businessman’s avarice-based perspective.
The Little Prince also draws from his interactions with others to validate or
dismiss concepts such as friendship. Seeing through his innocent, yet critical,
lens allows us to examine our own pre-formed notions surrounding these
concepts.

The Little Prince asks questions children would be likely to pose themselves in
similar situations. Many of the answers he receives come from very ‘grown-
up’ grown-ups. Illogical as they may seem in this context, the characters’
responses to the Little Prince reflect real-world scenarios. “Do as I say
because I’m the king,” doesn’t differ drastically from “Do as I say because

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I’m the parent/teacher.” Additionally, the reader is told that the Little Prince,
“Never in all his life let go of a question once he had asked it.” The example
of the Little Prince to children is to keep questioning until you receive an
answer and to then examine that answer. The ongoing process of critical
evaluation that undergirds this book is the cornerstone not only of the
following question sets but also of philosophy for children. This incredible
work represents a rich resource for those invested in cultivating a community
of inquiry in the elementary classroom.

Questions for Philosophical Discussion

The story of The Little Prince is about a pilot who crashes his plane in the
desert. The author of the story was also a pilot who was stuck in the desert
after his plane crashed. The pilot in the book meets a little prince from another
planet.

1 . Do you think everything in the book actually happened to the man who
wrote it?
2 . What’s the difference between reality and make-believe?
3 . Can things we read about in stories be real?
4 . Can we make a list of some things that we might find in this story that are
real and some things we might find that aren’t real?
5 . Can you think of a story you’ve heard that has both things from real life
and make-believe in it?

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Chapter IV
The pilot points out that, “When you tell them about a new friend, [grown-
ups] never ask questions about what really matters. They never ask: ‘What
does his voice sounds 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?'”

1 . How do you describe a friend?

The pilot says grown-ups will believe the little prince existed if you say, “The
planet he came from is Asteroid B-612.” He says grown-ups won’t believe he
existed if you say, “The proof of the little prince’s existence is that he was
delightful, that he laughed, and that he wanted a sheep.”

1 . What do you think proves that the little prince existed?

The pilot explains, “If I try to describe him here, it’s so I won’t forget him.”

1 . Does describing somebody help you remember him or her?

2 . What’s another way to remember a person? (Can point out that the pilot
also makes a picture of the little prince.)

We learn from the pilot that, “It’s already been 6 years since [the little prince]
went away.”

1 . If the little prince left Earth 6 years ago, but his friend still remembers
him, does the little prince still exist? (You can ask if he still exists on Earth to

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clarify.)

Chapter VII
If the pilot doesn’t fix his plane, he might die. The little prince thinks the war
between the sheep and the flowers is more serious.

1 . Which do you think is more serious? Why?

The pilot drops his tools and consoles the little prince. He thinks taking care of
his friend is more serious than his own life.

1 . Would you have taken care of your friend or fixed your plane?
2 . Is it ever okay to think your friend’s problems are more serious than your
own?
3 . When is it okay to think your own problems are more serious?

Chapter X
Let’s make a list of people who have authority.

1 . If the king in the story has no subjects, then does the king really have
authority?
2 . Does anybody or anything obey the king’s commands?
3 . What gives people authority?

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Chapter XI
1 . Who do you admire?
2 . Why does the vain man in the story want admiration?
3 . Does he deserve to be admired?
4 . Have you ever been admired?
5 . What were you admired for?
6 . Who admired you?
7 . What is admiration?

Chapter XIII
The businessman says he owns the stars because he was the first to think of it.

1 . Do you agree with him?

Original questions and guidelines for philosophical discussion by Allison

Trzop. Edited June 2020 by The Janet Prindle Institute for Ethics.

Find tips for leading a philosophical discussion on our Resources page.

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