Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

The writer who saw with his heart

Who is he?

Antoine de Saint-Exupéry is a French writer, poet, and pioneering aviator, known above all for his book The Little Prince.

Why is he an overman?

Antoine de Saint-Exupéry is a dreamer who can talk about what is valuable, beautiful and special in the human heart in a way that everyone can understand. He sees the absolute beauty in the most natural things that surround us: children, human nature, true love, etc.

Friends often described him as having a childlike imagination, easily captivated by small wonders, stories, or ideas. This innocence and sense of wonder is exactly what readers recognize in The Little Prince. At the same time, he had a contemplative, melancholic streak and often pondered themes like human connection, responsibility, and the meaning of life.

Curious facts:

Despite being an accomplished aviator, he was somewhat absent-minded and disorganized in daily life. He lost documents, forgot appointments, misplaced objects, and even once walked into a dinner party without noticing he was still wearing his flying goggles. But when it came to emergencies—engine failures, crashes, or desert missions—he became remarkably calm, resourceful, and brave.

In 1935, during an attempt to break a speed record by flying from Paris to Saigon, he crashed in the Sahara with his navigator. They wandered for days with almost no water, hallucinating and near death. This experience directly inspired the setting of The Little Prince.

Quotes:

One sees clearly only with the heart. What is essential is invisible to the eye.

Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.

A goal without a plan is just a wish.

Love does not consist in gazing at each other, but in looking outward together in the same direction.

Notable work:

The Little Prince

Wind, Sand and Stars

Short biography:

29 June 1900 – 31 July 1944

Born in Lyon to an aristocratic family, he spent much of his childhood in a provincial château, where he developed a vivid imagination and a fascination with machines. After a brief attempt at architecture, he joined the French Air Force in 1921 and discovered his passion for flying—an activity that would define both his career and his literary work. Aviation offered him a sense of freedom and purpose, and it became the foundation for many of his narratives.

Throughout the late 1920s and 1930s, Saint-Exupéry worked as a pilot for the pioneering airmail carrier Aéropostale, flying dangerous routes across North Africa and South America. His experiences—crashes, desert survival, and the camaraderie of pilots—shaped books such as Night Flight and Wind, Sand and Stars, the latter of which is considered one of the masterpieces of aviation literature.

Saint-Exupéry’s personal life was rich and complicated. In 1931, he married Consuelo Suncín, a Salvadoran writer and artist whose fiery personality both inspired and challenged him. Their relationship was passionate but often tumultuous, marked by long separations due to his flying assignments and his introspective, restless nature.

During World War II, he flew reconnaissance missions for the French Air Force despite being over the typical age limit and struggling with health issues. In 1944, while on a mission over the Mediterranean, his aircraft disappeared, and he was presumed dead at age 44.