"Good morning," said the little prince.
This was a merchant who sold pills that had been invented to quench thirst. You need only swallow one pill a week, and you would feel no need of anything to drink.
"Why are you selling those?" asked the little prince.
"Because they save a tremendous amount of time," said the merchant. "Computations have been made by experts. With these pills, you save fifty-three minutes in every week."
"And what do I do with those fifty-three minutes?"
"Anything you like . . ."
"As for me," said the little prince to himself, "if I had fifty-three minutes to spend as I liked, I should walk at my leisure toward a spring of fresh water."
The Little Prince, by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (chapter 23)
Small chapter, big message.
There's a metaphor here. I realize the author's life pre-dates our current technological advances, but the message here resonates with my suspicions regarding artificial intelligence.
It all sounds so novel, so convenient. It saves us time. Frees our brains from the tedious minutiae of thinking.
Adults are beguiled.
Merchants see dollar signs.
But I worry for my children's children. Babies, toddlers, kindergartners, school children, growing up where information is available instantaneously. What's not to like? Today's "merchants" make it all seem so marvelous. I read recently about Bill Gates fantasizing about the time when people will only have to work two days a week.
Think of the time saved.
But, at what cost? I've heard it said that work, no matter how menial, has its own rewards, that too much leisure has its downsides. Work—things like reading, building, creating, thinking. Things AI can now do for us in half the time.
Perhaps the story of the little prince's encounter with the merchant is a metaphor for today: the physical act of drawing water from a well, the pleasure of tasting, swallowing, drinking water, represents the satisfaction of being productive, of work, creativity, thinking, learning.
Time consuming, maybe. Laborious, perhaps.
But has its own rewards?
*****
For a similar view, here's an article by a journalist in Paris.
by Sam Schechner, Wall Street Journal (April 3, 2025)
