4/23 (Sat.) (The Little Prince /Host: Christine H)

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Christine
YOYO member
文章: 197
註冊時間: 週三 8月 31, 2005 7:34 pm

4/23 (Sat.) (The Little Prince /Host: Christine H)

文章 Christine »

Hi Guys,

Most of you might have known or heard of the story of The Little Prince. I assume this should be the topic worthwhile for our discussion, isn't it?

Here are the references for you to check out:

https://www.penguin.co.uk/articles/chil ... rince.html

If you are not familiar with The Little Prince, feel free to check this link below:
https://formfluent.com/blog/the-little- ... ts-the-eye

https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/littleprince/quotes/

The conversation between the little prince and the fox:
http://littleprince.fragomeni.it/lprince.removed.htm

The Little Prince has captured the hearts of readers around the world since he first appeared in 1943. Written by pilot Antoine de Saint-Exupéry while in America, the tale was inspired by his experiences in the French Air Force. On the surface it’s a simple story, but this little prince is as wise as they come and his messages of compassion and goodwill continue to endure. Here are seven life lessons we can learn from this enchanting tale, as told through quotes.


1. Don’t be too fond of numbers
‘Grown-ups are very fond of numbers. When you tell them about a new friend, they never ask you the kind of questions that should be asked, such as: “What kind of voice does he have?” “What are his favourite games?” “Does he collect butterflies?” Instead they ask: “How old is he? How much money does his father earn?” They really do imagine this is the best way to discover what sort of person he is!’

2. Look after the planet
‘“It’s a just a question of self-discipline,” the little prince explained later. “First thing in the morning you look after yourself, you brush your teeth and wash your face, don’t you? Well, the second thing you must do is to look after the planet.”’

3. Don’t judge others by their words, but by what they do
‘“[My rose] filled me with her fragrance, she had brought joy to my life. I should never leave her. I should have recognised what a sensitive sweet soul there was under all her rather silly games.’”

4. Relationships make life worth living
‘“What exactly does ‘tamed’ mean?”
“Well, it’s something too often forgotten,” said the fox. “I suppose it means: to make some kind of relationship.”
“Relationship?”
“Yes,” said the fox. “I’ll explain. To me, you are just a just a little boy like any other, like a hundred thousand other little boys. I have no need of you and you have no need of me. To you I am a fox like any other, like a hundred thousand other foxes. But if you tame me, you and I, we will have created a relationship, and so we will need one another. You will be unique in the world for me… If you were to tame me, my whole life would be so much more fun. I would come to know the sound of your footstep, and it would be different from all the others. At the sound of any other footstep I would be down in my hole in the earth as quick as you like. But your footstep would be like music to my ears, and I would come running up out of my hole, quick as you like.”

5. The important things in life you cannot see with your eyes, only with your heart
‘Once the little prince fell asleep, I picked him up in my arms and set off on my way again. I was so moved as I walked. It seemed to me that I was carrying in my arms the most delicate of treasures, that there could be nothing more fragile on the whole Earth. In the light of the moon I looked down at this pale forehead, those closed eyes, those locks of his that trembled in the wind: “What I am seeing,” I thought, “is no more than the shell. What is truly important I cannot see.”

6. It is the time you give to something that makes it precious
‘I lifted the bucket to his lips. He drank, his eyes closed. Then I drank. It was like a feast of water. This was not ordinary food of course, but it might just as well have been. The sweetness of this water was born from the long walk under the stars, from the song of the pulley, and for the effort of pulling up that bucket. It made me feel good, made me happy, as a present does.’

7. And finally, remember to look up at the stars
‘“Stars mean different things to different people. For travelers, stars tell them where they are, where they are going. For others, they are just little lights in the sky. For scholars, they are the world of the unknown, yet to be discovered and understood. For my businessman, they are gold. But all stars stay silent. And you? No one else in the world will see the stars as you do… For you, and only for you, the stars will always be laughing.”’

Questions for discussion:

SESSION ONE:
A. Please take turn to read the 7 quotes. (Group representative chose one to read in public.)
B. Are you inspired by any of the 7 timeless life lessons? Please share with your group.
C. Why can’t grown-ups see the true nature of things? (point1) As a grown-up, are you fond of numbers? What
are the questions you ask when you meet a new friend?/What factors you care to know about a person?
D. Is this the book suitable for children to read? Can children understand the philosophy of the book? (Some people said this book should be read 3 times in one's life: as a child, as a young adult and as an older adult.)


SESSION TWO:

E. (Please check the point 4, the conversation between The Little Prince and The Fox.)

On Earth, he comes across a bed of roses, making him realise that his rose had been lying to him and that she wasn’t unique at all. However, when he encounters and befriends a wise fox, it teaches him that the rose really was one of a kind after all. It is because he poured his love and time into her that makes her special from all those roses he saw in the garden.

“Love and relationships”, one of the main topics discussed in the book. “Relationships makes life worth living”, do you agree with it?
If that’s important to you, what’s your secret to maintain good and close relationships with the ones you care?


F. From the conversation between the little prince and the fox…. We all need rituals.' 'What is a ritual?' said the little prince. 'Something else that is frequently neglected,' said the fox. It's what makes one day different from the other days, one hour different from the other hours.

“Ritual” is getting popular and quite often heard nowadays. Do you think it is important to have it in a relationship, in our life? Why?

G. 村上春樹(Haruki Murakami) said, Without a little happiness, life is nothing but a desert. Do you agree with him? How can we do to create Ritual in a relationship or our life?


Agenda:
3:45 ~ 4:00pm Greetings & Free Talk / Ordering Beverage or Meal / Getting Newcomer’s Information
4:00 ~ 4:10pm Opening Remarks / Newcomer’s Self-introduction / Grouping
(Session I)
4:10 ~ 4:50pm Discussion Session (40 mins)
4:50 ~ 5:10pm Summarization (20 mins)
5:10 ~ 5:15pm Regrouping / Instruction Giving / Taking a 10 Minutes Break (Intermission)
(Session II)
5:15 ~ 5:55pm Discussion Session (40 mins)
6:00 ~ 6:20pm Summarization (20 mins)
6:20 ~ 6:30pm Concluding Remarks / Announcements

Meeting Date: As shown on the Subject Line
Meeting Time: 4:00pm – 6:30pm
Meeting Venue: 丹堤咖啡 Dante Coffee (Minimum Order $80)
Address: 台北市濟南路三段25號[MAP]-捷運忠孝新生站3號出口步行3分鐘

Important Notes:
1. We advise participants to print out the discussion questions and bring them to the meeting for reference. As for the supporting articles, feel free to print them out, as well, according to your preference.
2. We suggest that participants read the articles and think about the questions in advance.
3. Newcomers should prepare a two-to-three minute self-introduction in English to deliver when called upon by the host before the start of the discussion. The host may also ask you to give brief feedback about the meeting at the conclusion of the meeting.
4. We conduct the entire meeting in English. All participants should have at least moderate English-conversation skills and be able to articulate your ideas for each discussion question.
5. We welcome newcomers and other guests to attend the meetings and join the discussion freely for three times. After that, we hope you will consider becoming a YoYo English Club member. We charge a NT$1000 lifetime membership fee.
Iris Wu
YOYO member
文章: 894
註冊時間: 週二 5月 20, 2014 4:33 pm

Re: 4/23 (Sat.) (The Little Prince /Host: Christine H)

文章 Iris Wu »

In YoYo Book Reading Group, Stephen asked:
"if you tame me, my days will be as if filled with sunlight. I shall know a sound of footstep different from all the rest. Other steps make me run to earth. Yours will call me out of my foxhole like music."
-- These sentences are so romantic. I am wondering, has anyone ever used this quote for proposing?

What I found is the next few statements are as well romantic and sensational to departing love or for those who have to leave their love behind:
"Corn is of no use for me. Cornfields remind me of nothing. Which is sad! On the other hand, your hair is the color of gold. So think how wonderful it will be when you have tamed me. The corn, which is golden, will remind me (of) you. And I shall come to love the sound of the wind in the field of corn...."

Same as Stephen, I love this statement:"And I shall come to love the sound of the wind in the field of corn...."
I like the implications and the abstract of absence very much. The eternity of something abstract gives us endless imagination.

[Notes: There are different versions of the translation. The above quotes are from the third article selected by the host.]
Kooper
YOYO member
文章: 2725
註冊時間: 週三 4月 11, 2007 11:40 pm

Re: 4/23 (Sat.) (The Little Prince /Host: Christine H)

文章 Kooper »

At first, I didn’t quite understand the meaning of ritual in the Little Prince, so I googled and figured out that it’s not very different from the concept of the habit loop. That finding however baffles me.

A habit loop contains three elements: cue, routine, and reward. It is true that a well-established ritual helps ensure repeated occurrence of a cue in the right place at the right time, which in turn prompts the desired behavior.

It sounds weird to claim that ritual is the cornerstone of any valued relationship. The authenticity of a relationship could be doubted if it is just a collection of rituals. Shouldn’t tight-knit bonds be kept through mindful actions rather than those involuntary operation of system one mindset?
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