The Little Prince.

If you haven’t read it “The Little Prince” by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry is an amazing book. It works on a number of different levels. It’s a children’s book but in some ways, it may be a bit too grown up of a child. It’s a fairy tale with almost magical elements and yet the author himself appears in it.

I have written an essay in the Lingopage.com Word du Jour (Which will be published on 29 December 2016) about how “The Little Prince” may or may not been inspired by another French book from 250 years before called “Le Prince Lutin”. “The Lutin Prince” was part of a collection of  “Les Contes des Fees” { The tales of the Fairies} written by Marie-Catherine Baronne d’Aulnoy in 1697. A Lutin is a sort of Leprechaun or Goblin or Gnome or Pixie or Imp like creature that lives in France.

I have all kinds of theories about the book, but I dislike when people force the “ideas” on me. So please take any opinions that I share on the work as just what they are, opinions.

So rather than talk about the book and spoil it for you, let us talk about the circumstances under which “The Little Prince” was written.

World War II

There was a war. The United Kingdom and France declared war on Germany after giving Hitler and ultimatum that he would not be allowed to invade any more countries with impunity. Hitler had already invaded and seized power in Czechoslovakia and Austria. Then Hitler invaded Poland.

France and the UK declared war on Hitler for invading Poland.

On the other hand, Russia had a pact with Hitler, and the Russians invaded Poland from the East claiming the eastern part of the country for the USSR.

Germany then turned on France and the British. The French and British were driven back to the beaches at Dunkirk where the British were evacuated back to their home ground.

France was the last country in Europe to fall to Hitler and many French kept fighting as part of the Free French. Antoine de Saint-Exupéry was a pilot and a loyal Frenchman in his countries deadliest hour.

• 1900, 29 June – Saint-Exupéry was born in Lyon, France
• 1935, 30 December – Saint-Exupéry and his mechanic-navigator André Prévot are attempting to break the Speed record flying from Paris to Saigon. After almost 20 yours in the air their plane crashes in the Libyan desert. This crash in the desert is part of the story in The Little Prince.
• 1939, 1 September, Hitler invades Poland.
• 1939, 17 September the Soviet Union invades Poland from the east.
• 1939 September France and the British Commonwealth and Empire declared war on Germany. After Nazi Germany invaded Poland in September 1939
• 1939 September, Saint-Exupéry, who is already working as a pilot in Africa joins the French Air Force (Armée de l’Air), flying reconnaissance missions. He is 39.
• 6 May 1940 The evacuation at Dunkirk begins. The British Expeditionary Force (BEF) returns to England.
• 10 May 1940 The fall of France
• 1940 – After the armistice with Germany Saint-Exupéry is demobilized from the French Air Force. He then escapes France via Portugal. He arrived in New York City on 31 December 1940.
• 1941 – Saint-Exupéry starts to travel the United States giving speeches and writing books and essays to persuade the U.S. government to enter the war against Nazi Germany.
• Between January 1941 and April 1943 the Saint-Exupéry lived in exile in New York
• 1941, 7 December – Pearl Harbor is attacked. Hitler declares war on the United States of America. Almost a year after Saint-Exupéry arrives in New York America enters World War II.
• 1942 – Saint-Exupéry becomes ill during speaking tours for the war effort. In October while in bed he begins to write and illustrates “The Little Prince”.
• 1943 – Early in the New Year “The little Prince” published in both French and English.
• 1943 – Saint-Exupéry wishing to join the American troops bound for North Africa begins to petition the U.S. Army. With a few health problems related to his earlier crash and at the age of 42Saint-Exupéry is way past the maximum age range for pilots.
• General Dwight Eisenhower finally approves Saint-Exupéry’s petition allowing him to be a pilot.
• 1943 – April, Saint-Exupéry joins the Free French Air Force. He leaves American with troops bound for North Africa.
  Despite all his efforts in for the Free French Saint-Exupéry is accused of being on being a traitor. This rumor is basically Nazi propaganda as Saint-Exupéry is quite famous from his books and his record as a pilot and anti-Nazi Free French pilot.
• 1944, 6 June D-day invasion.
• 31 July 1944 – Saint-Exupéry’s plane is shot down on 31 July 1944 by German plans. Saint-Exupéry is killed.
• 25 August 1944. France is liberated. The Liberation of Paris (also known as the Battle for Paris took place from 19 August 1944 until the German garrison surrendered the French capital on 25 August 1944.

Sadly Saint-Exupéry did not live the see his country liberated or to clear his name. It wasn’t until 2000 that the Lockheed F-5B plane that he was flying was finally found and it was at last confirmed that Saint-Exupéry had died in service of France.

Mort pour la France
{Died for France}

I work as a publisher and there is a very cynical side of the publishing business where 70 years after a person’s death, on the 1^st of January the next year to be exact, their life’s work becomes public domain.

You might have noticed that a few years ago in 2011 copies of “the Great Gatsby” suddenly sprang up on bookshelves everywhere. Fitzgerald died in 1940 and at the stroke of midnight 1 January 2011 it was 70 years after Fitzgerald had died.

Copyright laws are different in different countries. Australia, for example, doesn’t recognize the 70-year law of other countries copyright work. The Great Gatsby was already out of copyright in Australia before 2011. Australian director Baz Luhrmann was able to start the pre-production in 2008 in Australia while the work was still subject to copyright in America where he would have had to pay royalties to the Fitzgerald family.

France also has the 70-year copyright law. You might have noticed that starting in 2015 suddenly there are a number of copies of the Little Prince on the shelves and even an animated movie in the theaters.

There is another aspect to the French copyright law that no one may have noticed.

France has a «mort pour la France» {Died for France} clause in its copyright law (Article L123-10). As per the general rule authors are deemed to have died on the 31 of December on the year of their death.

The proprietary rights of the author last for seventy (70) years after his or her death. (Art. L123-1),

Or for one hundred (100) years after the author’s death if the author is declared to have died on active service (mort pour la France).

The Little Prince may still be in copyright for another 28 years. Few people know about this law but it is worth pointing out. Antoine de Saint-Exupéry gave his all for his country.