The Little Prince / Le Petit Prince — ĐœĐ° Đ°ĐœĐłĐ»Ń–ĐčсĐșĐ°Đč і Ń„Ń€Đ°ĐœŃ†ŃƒĐ·ŃĐșĐ°Đč ĐŒĐŸĐČах. ĐĄŃ‚Đ°Ń€ĐŸĐœĐșĐ° 3

ĐĐœĐłĐ»Ń–ĐčсĐșĐ°-Ń„Ń€Đ°ĐœŃ†ŃƒĐ·ŃĐșая ĐșĐœŃ–ĐłĐ°-Đ±Ń–Đ»Ń–ĐœĐłĐČĐ°

Antoine de Saint-Exupery

The Little Prince

Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

Le Petit Prince

The little prince was now white with rage.

Le petit prince Ă©tait maintenant tout pĂąle de colĂšre.

“The flowers have been growing thorns for millions of years. For millions of years the sheep have been eating them just the same. And is it not a matter of consequence to try to understand why the flowers go to so much trouble to grow thorns which are never of any use to them? Is the warfare between the sheep and the flowers not important? Is this not of more consequence than a fat red-faced gentleman’s sums?

— Il y a des millions d’annĂ©es que les fleurs fabriquent des Ă©pines. Il y a des millions d’annĂ©es que les moutons mangent quand mĂȘme les fleurs. Et ce n’est pas sĂ©rieux de chercher Ă  comprendre pourquoi elles se donnent tant de mal pour se fabriquer des Ă©pines qui ne servent jamais Ă  rien? Ce n’est pas important la guerre des moutons et des fleurs? Ce n’est pas plus sĂ©rieux et plus important que les additions d’un gros Monsieur rouge?

And if I know — I, myself — one flower which is unique in the world, which grows nowhere but on my planet, but which one little sheep can destroy in a single bite some morning, without even noticing what he is doing — Oh! You think that is not important!”

Et si je connais, moi, une fleur unique au monde, qui n’existe nulle part, sauf dans ma planĂšte, et qu’un petit mouton peut anĂ©antir d’un seul coup, comme ça, un matin, sans se rendre compte de ce qu’il fait, ce n’est pas important ça!

His face turned from white to red as he continued:

Il rougit, puis reprit:

“If some one loves a flower, of which just one single blossom grows in all the millions and millions of stars, it is enough to make him happy just to look at the stars. He can say to himself, ‘Somewhere, my flower is there
’ But if the sheep eats the flower, in one moment all his stars will be darkened
 And you think that is not important!”

— Si quelqu’un aime une fleur qui n’existe qu’à un exemplaire dans les millions et les millions d’étoiles, ça suffit pour qu’il soit heureux quand il les regarde. Il se dit: «Ma fleur est lĂ  quelque part » Mais si le mouton mange la fleur, c’est pour lui comme si, brusquement, toutes les Ă©toiles s’éteignaient! Et ce n’est pas important ça!

He could not say anything more. His words were choked by sobbing. The night had fallen. I had let my tools drop from my hands. Of what moment now was my hammer, my bolt, or thirst, or death? On one star, one planet, my planet, the Earth, there was a little prince to be comforted. I took him in my arms, and rocked him. I said to him:

Il ne put rien dire de plus. Il Ă©clata brusquement en sanglots. La nuit Ă©tait tombĂ©e. J’avais lĂąchĂ© mes outils. Je me moquais bien de mon marteau, de mon boulon, de la soif et de la mort. Il y avait, sur une Ă©toile, une planĂšte, la mienne, la Terre, un petit prince Ă  consoler! Je le pris dans les bras. Je le berçai. Je lui disais:

“The flower that you love is not in danger. I will draw you a muzzle for your sheep. I will draw you a railing to put around your flower. I will — ”

— La fleur que tu aimes n’est pas en danger
 Je lui dessinerai une museliùre, à ton mouton
 Je te dessinerai une armure pour ta fleur
 Je


I did not know what to say to him. I felt awkward and blundering. I did not know how I could reach him, where I could overtake him and go on hand in hand with him once more. It is such a secret place, the land of tears.

Je ne savais pas trop quoi dire. Je me sentais trĂšs maladroit. Je ne savais comment l’atteindre, oĂč le rejoindre
 C’est tellement mystĂ©rieux, le pays des larmes.

VIII

CHAPITRE VIII

I soon learned to know this flower better. On the little prince’s planet the flowers had always been very simple. They had only one ring of petals; they took up no room at all; they were a trouble to nobody. One morning they would appear in the grass, and by night they would have faded peacefully away.

J’appris bien vite Ă  mieux connaĂźtre cette fleur. Il y avait toujours eu, sur la planĂšte du petit prince, des fleurs trĂšs simples, ornĂ©es d’un seul rang de pĂ©tales, et qui ne tenaient point de place, et qui ne dĂ©rangeaient personne. Elles apparaissaient un matin dans l’herbe, et puis elles s’éteignaient le soir.

But one day, from a seed blown from no one knew where, a new flower had come up; and the little prince had watched very closely over this small sprout which was not like any other small sprouts on his planet. It might, you see, have been a new kind of baobab.

Mais celle-lĂ  avait germĂ© un jour, d’une graine apportĂ©e d’on ne sait oĂč, et le petit prince avait surveillĂ© de trĂšs prĂšs cette brindille qui ne ressemblait pas aux autres brindilles. Ça pouvait ĂȘtre un nouveau genre de baobab.

The shrub soon stopped growing, and began to get ready to produce a flower. The little prince, who was present at the first appearance of a huge bud, felt at once that some sort of miraculous apparition must emerge from it. But the flower was not satisfied to complete the preparations for her beauty in the shelter of her green chamber.

Mais l’arbuste cessa vite de croĂźtre, et commença de prĂ©parer une fleur. Le petit prince, qui assistait Ă  l’installation d’un bouton Ă©norme, sentait bien qu’il en sortirait une apparition miraculeuse, mais la fleur n’en finissait pas de se prĂ©parer Ă  ĂȘtre belle, Ă  l’abri de sa chambre verte.

She chose her colors with the greatest care. She dressed herself slowly. She adjusted her petals one by one. She did not wish to go out into the world all rumpled, like the field poppies. It was only in the full radiance of her beauty that she wished to appear. Oh, yes! She was a coquettish creature!

Elle choisissait avec soin ses couleurs. Elle s’habillait lentement, elle ajustait un Ă  un ses pĂ©tales. Elle ne voulait pas sortir toute fripĂ©e comme les coquelicots. Elle ne voulait apparaĂźtre que dans le plein rayonnement de sa beautĂ©. Eh! oui. Elle Ă©tait trĂšs coquette!

And her mysterious adornment lasted for days and days. Then one morning, exactly at sunrise, she suddenly showed herself.

Sa toilette mystĂ©rieuse avait donc durĂ© des jours et des jours. Et puis voici qu’un matin, justement Ă  l’heure du lever du soleil, elle s’était montrĂ©e.

And, after working with all this painstaking precision, she yawned and said:

Et elle, qui avait travaillé avec tant de précision, dit en bùillant:

“Ah! I am scarcely awake. I beg that you will excuse me. My petals are still all disarranged
”

— Ah! Je me rĂ©veille Ă  peine
 Je vous demande pardon
 Je suis encore toute dĂ©coiffĂ©e


But the little prince could not restrain his admiration:

Le petit prince, alors, ne put contenir son admiration:

“Oh! How beautiful you are!”

— Que vous ĂȘtes belle!

“Am I not?” the flower responded, sweetly. “And I was born at the same moment as the sun
”

— N’est-ce pas, rĂ©pondit doucement la fleur. Et je suis nĂ©e en mĂȘme temps que le soleil


The little prince could guess easily enough that she was not any too modest — but how moving — and exciting — she was!

Le petit prince devina bien qu’elle n’était pas trop modeste, mais elle Ă©tait si Ă©mouvante!

“I think it is time for breakfast,” she added an instant later. “If you would have the kindness to think of my needs
”

— C’est l’heure, je crois, du petit dĂ©jeuner, avait-elle bientĂŽt ajoutĂ©, auriez-vous la bontĂ© de penser Ă  moi


And the little prince, completely abashed, went to look for a sprinkling-can of fresh water.

Et le petit prince, tout confus, ayant Ă©tĂ© chercher un arrosoir d’eau fraĂźche, avait servi la fleur.

So, he tended the flower. So, too, she began very quickly to torment him with her vanity — which was, if the truth be known, a little difficult to deal with. One day, for instance, when she was speaking of her four thorns, she said to the little prince:

Ainsi l’avait-elle bien vite tourmentĂ© par sa vanitĂ© un peu ombrageuse. Un jour, par exemple, parlant de ses quatre Ă©pines, elle avait dit au petit prince:

“Let the tigers come with their claws!”

— Ils peuvent venir, les tigres, avec leurs griffes!

“There are no tigers on my planet,” the little prince objected. “And, anyway, tigers do not eat weeds.”

— Il n’y a pas de tigres sur ma planĂšte, avait objectĂ© le petit prince, et puis les tigres ne mangent pas l’herbe.

“I am not a weed,” the flower replied, sweetly.

— Je ne suis pas une herbe, avait doucement rĂ©pondu la fleur.

“Please excuse me
”

— Pardonnez-moi


“I am not at all afraid of tigers,” she went on, “but I have a horror of drafts. I suppose you wouldn’t have a screen for me?”

— Je ne crains rien des tigres, mais j’ai horreur des courants d’air. Vous n’auriez pas un paravent?

“A horror of drafts — that is bad luck, for a plant,” remarked the little prince, and added to himself, “This flower is a very complex creature
”

«Horreur des courants d’air
 ce n’est pas de chance, pour une plante, avait remarquĂ© le petit prince. Cette fleur est bien compliquĂ©e »

“At night I want you to put me under a glass globe. It is very cold where you live. In the place I came from — ”

— Le soir vous me mettrez sous globe. Il fait trĂšs froid chez vous. C’est mal installĂ©. LĂ  d’oĂč je viens


But she interrupted herself at that point. She had come in the form of a seed. She could not have known anything of any other worlds. Embarrassed over having let herself be caught on the verge of such a naĂŻve untruth, she coughed two or three times, in order to put the little prince in the wrong.

Mais elle s’était interrompue. Elle Ă©tait venue sous forme de graine. Elle n’avait rien pu connaĂźtre des autres mondes. HumiliĂ©e de s’ĂȘtre laissĂ© surprendre Ă  prĂ©parer un mensonge aussi naĂŻf, elle avait toussĂ© deux ou trois fois, pour mettre le petit prince dans son tort:

“The screen?”

— Ce paravent?


“I was just going to look for it when you spoke to me
”

— J’allais le chercher mais vous me parliez!

Then she forced her cough a little more so that he should suffer from remorse just the same.

Alors elle avait forcĂ© sa toux pour lui infliger quand mĂȘme des remords.

So the little prince, in spite of all the good will that was inseparable from his love, had soon come to doubt her. He had taken seriously words which were without importance, and it made him very unhappy.

Ainsi le petit prince, malgrĂ© la bonne volontĂ© de son amour, avait vite doutĂ© d’elle. Il avait pris au sĂ©rieux des mots sans importance, et Ă©tait devenu trĂšs malheureux.

“I ought not to have listened to her,” he confided to me one day. “One never ought to listen to the flowers. One should simply look at them and breathe their fragrance. Mine perfumed all my planet. But I did not know how to take pleasure in all her grace. This tale of claws, which disturbed me so much, should only have filled my heart with tenderness and pity.”

— J’aurais dĂ» ne pas l’écouter, me confia-t-il un jour, il ne faut jamais Ă©couter les fleurs. Il faut les regarder et les respirer. La mienne embaumait ma planĂšte, mais je ne savais pas m’en rĂ©jouir. Cette histoire de griffes, qui m’avait tellement agacĂ©, eĂ»t dĂ» m’attendrir


And he continued his confidences:

Il me confia encore:

“The fact is that I did not know how to understand anything! I ought to have judged by deeds and not by words. She cast her fragrance and her radiance over me. I ought never to have run away from her
 I ought to have guessed all the affection that lay behind her poor little stratagems. Flowers are so inconsistent! But I was too young to know how to love her 
”

— Je n’ai alors rien su comprendre! J’aurais dĂ» la juger sur les actes et non sur les mots. Elle m’embaumait et m’éclairait. Je n’aurais jamais dĂ» m’enfuir! J’aurais dĂ» deviner sa tendresse derriĂšre ses pauvres ruses. Les fleurs sont si contradictoires! Mais j’étais trop jeune pour savoir l’aimer.

IX

CHAPITRE IX

I believe that for his escape he took advantage of the migration of a flock of wild birds. On the morning of his departure he put his planet in perfect order. He carefully cleaned out his active volcanoes. He possessed two active volcanoes; and they were very convenient for heating his breakfast in the morning.

Je crois qu’il profita, pour son Ă©vasion, d’une migration d’oiseaux sauvages. Au matin du dĂ©part il mit sa planĂšte bien en ordre. Il ramona soigneusement ses volcans en activitĂ©. Il possĂ©dait deux volcans en activitĂ©. Et c’était bien commode pour faire chauffer le petit dĂ©jeuner du matin.

He also had one volcano that was extinct. But, as he said, “One never knows!” So he cleaned out the extinct volcano, too. If they are well cleaned out, volcanoes burn slowly and steadily, without any eruptions. Volcanic eruptions are like fires in a chimney.

Il possĂ©dait aussi un volcan Ă©teint. Mais, comme il disait, «On ne sait jamais!» Il ramona donc Ă©galement le volcan Ă©teint. S’ils sont bien ramonĂ©s, les volcans brĂ»lent doucement et rĂ©guliĂšrement, sans Ă©ruptions. Les Ă©ruptions volcaniques sont comme des feux de cheminĂ©e.

On our earth we are obviously much too small to clean out our volcanoes. That is why they bring no end of trouble upon us.

Évidemment sur notre terre nous sommes beaucoup trop petits pour ramoner nos volcans. C’est pourquoi ils nous causent des tas d’ennuis.

The little prince also pulled up, with a certain sense of dejection, the last little shoots of the baobabs. He believed that he would never want to return. But on this last morning all these familiar tasks seemed very precious to him.

Le petit prince arracha aussi, avec un peu de mĂ©lancolie, les derniĂšres pousses de baobabs. Il croyait ne jamais devoir revenir. Mais tous ces travaux familiers lui parurent, ce matin-lĂ , extrĂȘmement doux.

And when he watered the flower for the last time, and prepared to place her under the shelter of her glass globe, he realized that he was very close to tears.

Et, quand il arrosa une derniĂšre fois la fleur, et se prĂ©para Ă  la mettre Ă  l’abri sous son globe, il se dĂ©couvrit l’envie de pleurer.

 “Goodbye,” he said to the flower.

— Adieu, dit-il à la fleur.

But she made no answer.

Mais elle ne lui répondit pas.

“Goodbye,” he said again.

— Adieu, rĂ©pĂ©ta-t-il.

The flower coughed. But it was not because she had a cold.

La fleur toussa. Mais ce n’était pas Ă  cause de son rhume.

“I have been silly,” she said to him, at last. “I ask your forgiveness. Try to be happy
”

— J’ai Ă©tĂ© sotte, lui dit-elle enfin. Je te demande pardon. TĂąche d’ĂȘtre heureux.

He was surprised by this absence of reproaches. He stood there all bewildered, the glass globe held arrested in mid-air. He did not understand this quiet sweetness.

Il fut surpris par l’absence de reproches. Il restait lĂ  tout dĂ©concertĂ©, le globe en l’air. Il ne comprenait pas cette douceur calme.

“Of course I love you,” the flower said to him. “It is my fault that you have not known it all the while. That is of no importance. But you — you have been just as foolish as I. Try to be happy
 Let the glass globe be. I don’t want it any more.”

— Mais oui, je t’aime, lui dit la fleur. Tu n’en as rien su, par ma faute. Cela n’a aucune importance. Mais tu as Ă©tĂ© aussi sot que moi. TĂąche d’ĂȘtre heureux
 Laisse ce globe tranquille. Je n’en veux plus.

“But the wind — ”

— Mais le vent


“My cold is not so bad as all that
 The cool night air will do me good. I am a flower.”

— Je ne suis pas si enrhumĂ©e que ça
 L’air frais de la nuit me fera du bien. Je suis une fleur.

“But the animals — ”

— Mais les bĂȘtes


“Well, I must endure the presence of two or three caterpillars if I wish to become acquainted with the butterflies. It seems that they are very beautiful. And if not the butterflies — and the caterpillars — who will call upon me? You will be far away
 As for the large animals — I am not at all afraid of any of them. I have my claws.”

— Il faut bien que je supporte deux ou trois chenilles si je veux connaĂźtre les papillons. Il paraĂźt que c’est tellement beau. Sinon qui me rendra visite? Tu seras loin, toi. Quant aux grosses bĂȘtes, je ne crains rien. J’ai mes griffes.

And, naĂŻvely, she showed her four thorns. Then she added:

Et elle montrait naĂŻvement ses quatre Ă©pines. Puis elle ajouta:

“Don’t linger like this. You have decided to go away. Now go!”

— Ne traĂźne pas comme ça, c’est agaçant. Tu as dĂ©cidĂ© de partir. Va-t’en.

For she did not want him to see her crying. She was such a proud flower.

Car elle ne voulait pas qu’il la vĂźt pleurer. C’était une fleur tellement orgueilleuse


X

CHAPITRE X

He found himself in the neighborhood of the asteroids 325, 326, 327, 328, 329, and 330. He began, therefore, by visiting them, in order to add to his knowledge.

Il se trouvait dans la rĂ©gion des astĂ©roĂŻdes 325, 326, 327, 328, 329 et 330. Il commença donc par les visiter pour y chercher une occupation et pour s’instruire.

The first of them was inhabited by a king. Clad in royal purple and ermine, he was seated upon a throne which was at the same time both simple and majestic.

La premiĂšre Ă©tait habitĂ©e par un roi. Le roi siĂ©geait, habillĂ© de pourpre et d’hermine, sur un trĂŽne trĂšs simple et cependant majestueux.

“Ah! Here is a subject,” exclaimed the king, when he saw the little prince coming.

— Ah! VoilĂ  un sujet, s’écria le roi quand il aperçut le petit prince.

And the little prince asked himself:
“How could he recognize me when he had never seen me before?”

Et le petit prince se demanda:
— Comment peut-il me reconnaütre puisqu’il ne m’a encore jamais vu!

He did not know how the world is simplified for kings. To them, all men are subjects.

Il ne savait pas que, pour les rois, le monde est trÚs simplifié. Tous les hommes sont des sujets.

“Approach, so that I may see you better,” said the king, who felt consumingly proud of being at last a king over somebody.

— Approche-toi que je te voie mieux, lui dit le roi qui Ă©tait tout fier d’ĂȘtre roi pour quelqu’un.

The little prince looked everywhere to find a place to sit down; but the entire planet was crammed and obstructed by the king’s magnificent ermine robe. So he remained standing upright, and, since he was tired, he yawned.

Le petit prince chercha des yeux oĂč s’asseoir, mais la planĂšte Ă©tait toute encombrĂ©e par le magnifique manteau d’hermine. Il resta donc debout, et, comme il Ă©tait fatiguĂ©, il bĂąilla.

“It is contrary to etiquette to yawn in the presence of a king,” the monarch said to him. “I forbid you to do so.”

— Il est contraire Ă  l’étiquette de bĂąiller en prĂ©sence d’un roi, lui dit le monarque. Je te l’interdis.

“I can’t help it. I can’t stop myself,” replied the little prince, thoroughly embarrassed. “I have come on a long journey, and I have had no sleep
”

— Je ne peux pas m’en empĂȘcher, rĂ©pondit le petit prince tout confus. J’ai fait un long voyage et je n’ai pas dormi


“Ah, then,” the king said. “I order you to yawn. It is years since I have seen anyone yawning. Yawns, to me, are objects of curiosity. Come, now! Yawn again! It is an order.”

— Alors, lui dit le roi, je t’ordonne de bĂąiller. Je n’ai vu personne bĂąiller depuis des annĂ©es. Les bĂąillements sont pour moi des curiositĂ©s. Allons! bĂąille encore. C’est un ordre.

“That frightens me
 I cannot, any more
” murmured the little prince, now completely abashed.

— Ça m’intimide
 je ne peux plus
 fit le petit prince tout rougissant.

“Hum! Hum!” replied the king. “Then I — I order you sometimes to yawn and sometimes to — ”

— Hum! Hum! rĂ©pondit le roi. Alors je
 je t’ordonne tantĂŽt de bĂąiller et tantĂŽt de


He sputtered a little, and seemed vexed.

Il bredouillait un peu et paraissait vexé.

For what the king fundamentally insisted upon was that his authority should be respected. He tolerated no disobedience. He was an absolute monarch. But, because he was a very good man, he made his orders reasonable.

Car le roi tenait essentiellement Ă  ce que son autoritĂ© fĂ»t respectĂ©e. Il ne tolĂ©rait pas la dĂ©sobĂ©issance. C’était un monarque absolu. Mais, comme il Ă©tait trĂšs bon, il donnait des ordres raisonnables.

“If I ordered a general,” he would say, by way of example, “if I ordered a general to change himself into a sea bird, and if the general did not obey me, that would not be the fault of the general. It would be my fault.”

«Si j’ordonnais, disait-il couramment, si j’ordonnais Ă  un gĂ©nĂ©ral de se changer en oiseau de mer, et si le gĂ©nĂ©ral n’obĂ©issait pas, ce ne serait pas la faute du gĂ©nĂ©ral. Ce serait ma faute.»

“May I sit down?” came now a timid inquiry from the little prince.

— Puis-je m’asseoir? s’enquit timidement le petit prince.

“I order you to do so,” the king answered him, and majestically gathered in a fold of his ermine mantle.

— Je t’ordonne de t’asseoir, lui rĂ©pondit le roi, qui ramena majestueusement un pan de son manteau d’hermine.

But the little prince was wondering
 The planet was tiny. Over what could this king really rule?

Mais le petit prince s’étonnait. La planĂšte Ă©tait minuscule. Sur quoi le roi pouvait-il bien rĂ©gner?

“Sire,” he said to him, “I beg that you will excuse my asking you a question — ”

— Sire, lui dit-il
 je vous demande pardon de vous interroger


“I order you to ask me a question,” the king hastened to assure him.

— Je t’ordonne de m’interroger, se hñta de dire le roi.

“Sire — over what do you rule?”

— Sire
 sur quoi rĂ©gnez-vous?

“Over everything,” said the king, with magnificent simplicity.

— Sur tout, rĂ©pondit le roi, avec une grande simplicitĂ©.

“Over everything?”

— Sur tout?

The king made a gesture, which took in his planet, the other planets, and all the stars.

Le roi d’un geste discret dĂ©signa sa planĂšte, les autres planĂštes et les Ă©toiles.

“Over all that?” asked the little prince.

— Sur tout ça? dit le petit prince.

“Over all that,” the king answered.

— Sur tout ça
 rĂ©pondit le roi.

For his rule was not only absolute: it was also universal.

Car non seulement c’était un monarque absolu mais c’était un monarque universel.

“And the stars obey you?”

— Et les Ă©toiles vous obĂ©issent?

“Certainly they do,” the king said. “They obey instantly. I do not permit insubordination.”

— Bien sĂ»r, lui dit le roi. Elles obĂ©issent aussitĂŽt. Je ne tolĂšre pas l’indiscipline.

Such power was a thing for the little prince to marvel at. If he had been master of such complete authority, he would have been able to watch the sunset, not forty-four times in one day, but seventy-two, or even a hundred, or even two hundred times, without ever having to move his chair.

Un tel pouvoir Ă©merveilla le petit prince. S’il l’avait dĂ©tenu lui-mĂȘme, il aurait pu assister, non pas Ă  quarante-quatre, mais Ă  soixante-douze, ou mĂȘme Ă  cent, ou mĂȘme Ă  deux cents couchers de soleil dans la mĂȘme journĂ©e, sans avoir jamais Ă  tirer sa chaise!

And because he felt a bit sad as he remembered his little planet which he had forsaken, he plucked up his courage to ask the king a favor:

Et comme il se sentait un peu triste Ă  cause du souvenir de sa petite planĂšte abandonnĂ©e, il s’enhardit Ă  solliciter une grĂące du roi:

“I should like to see a sunset
 Do me that kindness
 Order the sun to set
”

— Je voudrais voir un coucher de soleil
 Faites-moi plaisir
 Ordonnez au soleil de se coucher


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