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SHORT PLOT/CHAPTER SUMMARY (Synopsis)

The narrator begins the tale with an explanation of his dislike of adults; he claims he does not enjoy them, for they are much too practical. Instead, he prefers the company of children, who are natural and curious.

The narrator next tells of how his plane crashed in the desert, where he met the Little Prince, a mystical creature from another planet. The narrator tells why the Prince left his planet and where he visited before coming to Earth. His adventures on six different planets are recounted, including the encounters with the king, the conceited man, the tippler, the businessman, the lamplighter, the geographer, the snake, the desert flower, the garden of roses, the railway switchman, the merchant, the fox, and the narrator.

The narrator and the Prince share a rewarding relationship on the desert, and when the Little Prince departs, the narrator misses his company. He writes the novel in memory of the Little Prince.

MOOD

The mood is mostly adventurous and mysterious, with a philosophical overtone. At first the Little Prince does not reveal his identity, creating an initial sense of mystery. Then as the Little Prince recounts his travels, the mood becomes adventurous. As he questions the fox and the narrator, the mood becomes philosophic. At the end, when the Prince arranges to be bitten by the snake, the mood again becomes mysterious. Although he seems to die from the snake bite, the narrator cannot find the Prince's body when he looks for it the next morning. He can only assume that the Prince successfully returns to his star.

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