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The Rose/Flower
The lamplighter is a faithful but unhappy grownup, who is miserable because his job allows him no rest. His planet makes a full turn every minute, and in order to keep up, he is constantly lighting or putting out the lamp. The little prince thinks more highly of him than of the other grownups because he is the only one who thinks of something beside himself.
The Lamplighter Quotes in The Little Prince
The The Little Prince quotes below are all either spoken by The Lamplighter or refer to The Lamplighter. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 14
Quotes
"It may well be that this man is absurd. But he is not so absurd as the king, the conceited man, the businessman, and the tippler. For at least his work has some meaning. When he lights his street lamp, it is as if he brought one more star to life, or one flower. When he puts out his lamp, he sends the flower, or the star, to sleep. That is a beautiful occupation. And since it is beautiful, it is truly useful."
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Explanation and Analysis:
"That man," said the little prince to himself, as he continued farther on his journey, "that man would be scorned by all the others: by the king, by the conceited man, by the tippler, by the businessman. Nevertheless he is the only one of them all who does not seem to me ridiculous. Perhaps that is because he is thinking of something else besides himself."
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire The Little Prince LitChart as a printable PDF.
The Lamplighter Quotes in The Little Prince
The The Little Prince quotes below are all either spoken by The Lamplighter or refer to The Lamplighter. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 14
Quotes
"It may well be that this man is absurd. But he is not so absurd as the king, the conceited man, the businessman, and the tippler. For at least his work has some meaning. When he lights his street lamp, it is as if he brought one more star to life, or one flower. When he puts out his lamp, he sends the flower, or the star, to sleep. That is a beautiful occupation. And since it is beautiful, it is truly useful."
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
"That man," said the little prince to himself, as he continued farther on his journey, "that man would be scorned by all the others: by the king, by the conceited man, by the tippler, by the businessman. Nevertheless he is the only one of them all who does not seem to me ridiculous. Perhaps that is because he is thinking of something else besides himself."
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
