I have always been obsessed with The Little Prince. I bought the book once when I went abroad and it became both a habit and an incentive to travel and get as many translated versions as possible. The chapter 21, introducing Renard (the fox) is my absolute favourite. I always read that chapter even though I don’t speak the language.
As far as I remember, Renard (the fox) – which is, in my opinion, the only female character in the book except for the Rose – has fascinated me. There is something I can relate to in the way she is begging (“Tame me”!); in this pressing need to learn the sound of the Little Prince’s so she can ready her heart to greet him and at the same time, protect herself and hide from danger when the step is different. The way she responds as well when the Little Prince seems upset for the time together now that he has to leave: what good did it do to you to be tamed now that you are crying because I’m never coming back?
– “It has done me good,” said the fox, “because of the color of the wheat fields.”
The Little Prince, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry