The enabling environment in The Little Prince: a dialogue between literature, cinema and psychoanalysis

Abstract

Cinema dialogues with psychoanalysis and makes this knowledge more accessible through interpretations that articulate different aspects of artistic expression. This theoretical study aims to analyze how the environment can act as a facilitator in the transformation of the false self into the true self, based on the concepts of psychoanalyst Donald Winnicott, highlighting the importance of bonds and a sufficiently good environment for emotional development. The analytical corpus consisted of the film The Little Prince (2015),

directed by Mark Osborne, is used as an illustration. In the film, the protagonist maintains a submissive relationship with her mother, marked by strict rules and a relentless pursuit of approval through her studies, in a typical expression of a false self. Upon meeting the aviator, the girl's true self begins to show signs of existence, enchanted by colours and sounds and seemingly infected by so much life. Thus, the bond with the aviator allows creativity to emerge and opens her up to a more genuine experience. The role of the aviator can be compared to the function of the analyst in presenting a new environment capable of sustaining the demands brought forth without imposing his needs, accepting and surviving the curiosities, questions, acts of love and also aggression that arise in the relationship. Such experiences prove essential for the emotional maturation of the protagonist.