In Javascript, why is there no "prototype" property for an instance or object literal?

Question

In Javascript, any "function object" has a prototype

> F = function() {}
F()
> F.prototype
F {}

But "object" or "instance" doesn't have a prototype

> o = {}
Object {}
> o.prototype
undefined
> f = new F()
F {}
> f.prototype
undefined

However, the built-in object "Function" and "Object" have a prototype:

> Function.prototype
Empty()
> Object.prototype
Object {}

This looks quite confusing for me.

1. Function and "function object" have a prototype property

2. Object has a prototype property, but "object literal" and "instance object" doesn't have a prototype property

What does the prototype property actually mean? In the example above, shouldn't the prototype property of f be F?

Does anyone have ideas about how to explain this? Thanks!

Chromatogram

An instance is an object, and objects are not functions. Object and Function are functions (constructors). Note "object" (as in {}) vs "Object" as in anything that is a JavaScript object. – Massachusetts

Answer 1

Don't confuse the prototype attribute of a function with the internal prototype of an object (which places the object in the prototype chain).

Function and Object are constructor functions, as such, they have a prototype attribute, which will be assigned as the internal prototype of objects created with these constructor functions.

I recommend Eloquent Javascript's chapter "The secret life of objects", particularly for this quote:

It is important to note the distinction between the way a prototype is associated with a constructor (through its prototype property) and the way objects have a prototype (which can be retrieved with Object.getPrototypeOf). The actual prototype of a constructor is Function.prototype since constructors are functions. Its prototype property will be the prototype of instances created through it but is not its own prototype.

Imponderabilia