Glossary
| Word / Phrase | Meaning |
|---|---|
| kinglet | a little king; a king of a very small country |
| courtiers | attendants at a royal court |
| poll-tax | a tax levied on each individual |
| roulette | a gambling game played on a spinning wheel |
| turnover | the total amount of money played |
| monopoly | the sole right to a business |
| rakes in | (colloquial) earns a lot of money |
| levees | official receptions of guests or visitors in the morning |
| domains | the territory a ruler governs |
| hitch | a problem, a difficulty |
| guillotine | a machine with a heavy blade for beheading people |
| franc | the unit of currency of France (at that time) |
| wretch / rascal | a worthless or wicked person |
| republican | having an elected government, not a king |
| lock-up | a small temporary jail |
| keep | the cost of feeding and housing someone |
| be hanged to him | an old expression meaning "let him go, who cares" |
| annuity | a fixed sum paid every year |
| emigrated | left one country to live in another |
| frontier | the border between two countries |
| grudge | be unwilling to give or spend |
Detailed Explanation, Part 1: The Toy Kingdom and Its Income
Tolstoy opens with gentle mockery. Monaco is so small that "many a small country town" has more people. Yet the kinglet keeps all the trappings of a great king - palace, ministers, bishop, generals and an army. The army of sixty men makes the grandeur look comic.
Ordinary taxes (tobacco, wine and spirits, a poll-tax) are not enough, so the Prince depends on the gaming house. The writer explains why it is so profitable: the German rulers were stopped from running such houses because gamblers ruined themselves and even took their own lives, so Monaco is left with a monopoly.
The Prince knows it is "a dirty business" but excuses himself: taxing drink and tobacco "is also not a nice thing". The proverb "You can't earn stone palaces by honest labour" sums up the moral point: great wealth is seldom earned honestly.
Detailed Explanation, Part 2: Justice on a Budget
The trial is described with mock seriousness - judges, prosecutors, jurymen and barristers, all "in the most judicial manner". The sentence is death. "So far so good."
Then comes the comic hitch: no guillotine and no executioner. The whole question of justice becomes a question of price:
| Option tried | Cost / result |
|---|---|
| Hire from France | 16,000 francs - more than 2 francs a head; risk of a riot |
| Hire from Italy ("a brother monarch") | 12,000 francs including travel - still too much |
| Ask a soldier | Refused - "it is not a thing we have been taught" |
| Life imprisonment | Shows the Prince's "mercy" and is cheaper |
Note the irony in the soldiers' refusal: they are trained to kill in war, yet they will not execute one man. Note also the irony in "mercy": the sentence is softened not out of kindness but to save money.
Detailed Explanation, Part 3: The Prisoner Who Refused Freedom
Monaco has no real prison, so a lock-up and a guard are used. After a year the cost - over 600 francs a year - alarms the Prince, since the young man might live fifty years.
The ministers dismiss the guard, expecting the man to escape. The comedy peaks here: the prisoner fetches his own dinner from the palace kitchen, returns, and shuts the door on himself.
When the Minister of Justice asks him to go, the prisoner argues with surprising logic:
- he has nowhere to go;
- the sentence has ruined his character, so people will turn their backs on him;
- he has got out of the way of working;
- the state has broken its word at every step - it sentenced him to death but did not execute him, gave him a guard and then removed it, and now wants to throw him out.
The criminal sounds more reasonable than the government. This reversal is the heart of the satire.
Detailed Explanation, Part 4: The Pension and the Ironic Ending
The only way left is to pay him to leave. The pension is fixed at 600 francs - the same amount as the yearly cost of keeping him. He agrees "so long as you undertake to pay it regularly".
He takes one-third of his annuity in advance, crosses the frontier (a quarter of an hour by rail), buys land and starts market-gardening. He comes back on time to draw his pension and gambles two or three francs at the gaming tables. So the gaming house, which pays the Prince, now indirectly pays the murderer too.
The last line is pure irony: it was "a good thing" he did not commit his crime in a country that does not grudge the expense of executing or imprisoning a man.
Literary Features and Vocabulary
Satire and irony. The story mocks rulers who put money before justice. Examples of irony:
- The murderer ends up with land, a pension and a peaceful life.
- The soldiers, trained to kill, refuse to kill.
- Changing the sentence is called "mercy" but is really cost-cutting.
- The Prince lives on a harmful gaming house while holding court "with all the ceremony of a real King".
Tone. Light, humorous and mock-serious, hiding a serious criticism.
Homonyms (textbook vocabulary exercise)
A homonym is a word spelt and pronounced the same but with a different meaning. Example: "too dear to maintain the prisoner" (expensive) and "his dear daughter" (beloved).
| Sentence | Meaning |
|---|---|
| The valedictory address of the Chief guest impressed everyone. | speech |
| She made a mistake in writing the address. | location |
| The poor man's mind was full of worry. | thoughts |
| Do you mind passing the jam? | to be upset or annoyed |
| The soldier gave a complete account of the prisoner's escape. | description |
| The officer checked the ledger account. | financial record |
| He went to the ATM to draw some money. | take out |
| The teachers draw pictures on the blackboard. | sketch |
| Don't draw hasty conclusions without ample proof. | infer |
| The offer of free balloons draws children to the park. | attract |
In the story: "looking over the account of his income and expenditure" (financial record); "the Prince will not mind" and "I don't mind" (be upset or annoyed); "he always goes at the proper time to draw his pension" (take out). "Address an inquiry to the French Government" uses address as a verb meaning "send" or "direct".