A main theme that is present in both “Alice in Wonderland” and “The Little Prince” is the innocence of childhood, and the wealth of imagination that is present in these years.
In their respective books, Alice and The Little Prince speak in the same manner. They both use language that is rather unique and imaginative.
Both Alice and The Little Prince are very wise. For example, Alice says: “But if I’m not the same, the next question is, Who in the world am I? Ah, that’s the great puzzle!” (Carroll, Loc. 95). The children are also very inquisitive. One of Alice’s favorite praises is “Curiouser and curiouser!” and it seems without a doubt her favorite word is “Queer”. The Little Prince frequently asks questions, to the narrator. He also frequently gives answers.
Also, both of the children possess a large amount of imagination. In “Alice in Wonderland” this special gift of childhood is especially apparent: the whole story is based off the creativity of Alice’s mind. Imagination usually grows fainter as the child becomes older... the longer they live, the more they know, and the more things are set-in-stone in front of their eyes. They lose the quality to see into the special, magical kingdom of Wonderland.
What the authors meant to convey about all children (by giving the characters such characteristics) is that they naturally possess these traits... that is true. Children, young children especially, are predispositioned to possess a high level of curiosity. They frequently display this by asking questions. Many, many questions. The answers to the questions may seem obvious to adults, but children are new souls. Children want to find out as much as they can about the world, and if something doesn’t make sense to them- well, they’re not embarrassed to say so!
Children, also, are very innocent. This innocence brings with an innate wisdom, a wisdom not gained by experience... lost by experience. Children might not know a whole lot about the world, but they know about things pure and simple (because they are so). Their higher nature is much more visible and attainable than in adults. They seem to see the world through different eyes. They always know what’s the right thing to do, and they have high moral values. This is because their life has not yet been tainted, tainted by experience and material knowledge which can cause one to think differently. The more you know, the more you worry... and the less you are able to imagine...
This theme of innocence is especially apparent in “The Little Prince”. The Little Prince travels to different planets, and at each one he meets a man. Every time the man he meets has a different fault, the fault being a problem that adults often have, for example greed. I think the author was trying to point out that children have none of these problems, and that the Little Prince is wise in knowing that these behaviors are wrong.
Another parallel between the characters of Alice and the Little Prince is that they both have non-human characters that they care for, are very attached to, and talk about frequently. In Alice’s case, this character is her cat, Dinah. In the Little Prince’s case, the character is his rose.
These relationships are representative of the love that children have to give... Pure, selfless love. The children each feel responsibility for their plant or animal and they worry and talk about them constantly.
Adults often think that children don’t know what being responsible is, that they haven’t experienced it. That is not true! Children have a different type of responsibility than adults, the responsibility of love. They do better with their job than grown-ups ever did with theirs.
In the end, the Little Prince releases his soul to the stars in order to be with his flower again. An adult would never do so. Adults are usually very afraid of death, because they tend to only believe what they see. If an adult committed suicide, it would only be for selfish reasons.
But children aren’t afraid of death. Children are innocent. Children have faith, and children have love. Children have imagination: and so they can see past. This is the message that both “The Little Prince” and “Alice in Wonderland” intended to convey, though the former focused more on love and the latter on imagination.
