Category: Candide

Candide is one of the most acclaimed works by Voltaire composed during the Age of Enlightenment. These days it intrigues the perusers with its significant infiltration into the human world with every one of its shades of malice, disadvantages, deception and brutality. The unforgiving incongruity and mockery of the creator alongside extreme pundits towards the current social and strict standards made Candide the most brilliant case of Kant’s Enlightenment.

According, to Candide by Voltaire, he portrays the change of the hero Candide, all throughout the story. Voltaire used to parody, portrayal, and methods of embellishment and differentiation to speak to Candide’s perspective throughout everyday life. Fundamentally the hero perseveres through the human enduring to get his last fate. Additionally, Voltaire shows character advancement over the course beginning with a blameless character as a youngster who doesn’t have the duty to know into an incredible man. In the content, the language shows Candide’s advancement towards development. In the start of the novel the reader discovers smaller, vivid, and fresh sentences as Candide, the legend hurries through life. Later Voltaire embraces a quiet and intelligent style undifferentiated from Candide’s psychological advancement. Likewise, the creator refutes the excessively idealistic way of thinking that Candide and Pangloss speak to. While the encounters of Candide and Pangloss strife drastically with this way of thinking, both decide to keep up their convictions right now. Candide goes through phases of life to undergo change and experiences numerous undertakings and step by step develops into an accomplished and handyman. A portion of his undertakings were miserable and some not. He was expulsed from the royal residence for his adoration to Cunegonde, however, it helps him to face the brutality of existence with the philosophical view that everything in life are fundamental for some more prominent great. Candide is a basic individual who has not had a lot of genuine experience. He is expelled from his home and out of the blue acquainted with the truth of the outside world. All through his movements, he builds up another way of thinking of life. His eyes open to the real world, He sees that everything doesn’t occur for the best as the savants and metaphysician Pangloss had let him know in the Baron’s palace. In Europe just as in America, he experiences hopelessness. He meets various individuals from different backgrounds. He runs over numerous thinkers going from the outrageous good faith of Pangloss to the negativity of Martin. He encounters adoration with Ms. Cunegonde however it was not acknowledged for their diverse social classes.

Candide in the long run figures out how to accomplish joy even with misfortune. He discovers that so as to achieve a condition of happiness, one must be a piece of society where there is aggregate exertion and work. Candide invests a lot of energy venturing to the far corners of the planet and learning of a wide range of ideologies in power. Finally, he chooses to settle down and live by cultivating his own nursery this symbolizes he give up to straightforward self-safeguarding. After a long and troublesome battle wherein, Candide is compelled to defeat the incident to discover joy, he infers that everything isn’t in the same class as it appears the way Dr. Pangloss, his coach had instructed him. During his experiences he understands that things not generally occur generally advantageous, he comprehends that it simply occur in his honest psyche. Be that as it may, Candide consistently keeps in his heart goodness and love. Likewise, he realizes that toward the end, he is going to locate the best for his life. “We are destined, in the end, for another universe, no doubt that is the one where everything is well..'(p.391). Also, Candide starts to encounter human enduring from various perspectives as affection, depression and debacles. He comprehends that regardless of who are you, continually going to test the two sides bliss and misery on the grounds that is a piece of human life, “It’s true, and you see how people make mistakes who have not received a measure of education(p.402). Making botches is of people and those slip-ups make the experience, that later assist us to take choices.

Furthermore, other significant characters that contribute for Candide’s change are The Old Woman and Martin. The two assist Candide to get more information in the outside world and differentiate the Panglos’ way of thinking. The elderly person, she was an endured lady that needed to make do of numerous impediments.’ My last post was as a worker to the Jew wear Issachar; he appended me to your administration, my stunning one; and I joined myself to your fate, till I have gotten more worried about your destiny than with my own.'(p.396).In the other hand, Martin is a very doubter man who had been experienced awful circumstances; he was truly insulted with life. It was another occasion that makes Candide changes his way of thinking.

In his astonishing excursion, he finds that each occasion on the planet has an explanation and whether there are sure or negative minutes you need to live them.’ There is no impact without a reason, all occasions are connected by the chain of need and orchestrated the best. I must be driven away from Miss Cunegonde, I needed to go through the test of endurance, I need to ask my bread until I can win it; none of this could have happened otherwise'(P.381). In any case, before the finish of the story, the hero understood that to accomplish joy a ton of work, bargains, and forfeits are vital. In spite of the fact that life doesn’t turn out to be any simpler, now Candide starts to develop from a guileless youngster into a developed pragmatist. Candide acknowledges he should assume liability for his life. He should acknowledge circumstances and attempt to change obstructions that might be deterrents. Candide discovers that work will wipe out the three condemnations of humanity: need, fatigue, and bad habit. Candide acknowledges he should construct his own life; anyway basic it might be.

Voltaire says through Candide’s definitive disclosure that joy from various perspectives relies upon an individual’s mentality. When meeting a man that is content with a basic nursery to tend to and a family to adore, Candide acknowledges life doesn’t need to be brimming with riches so as to be upbeat. Toward the end he understands that everything in life isn’t malicious, particularly when an individual endeavors to make changes and not just acknowledge what comes their direction.

In Bewitched Toyo-o, was everything that his general public accepted a man ought not be. His greatest offense was his absence of enthusiasm for the privately-run company. He wanted to invest his energy concentrating on his priest, Abe no Yumimaro, a cleric of the Kumano Shrine. Toyo-o had been shown book information on how to compose the Chinese characters for instance, which was viewed as pointless information in his town. He likewise appreciated the social interests and city life exercises of Kyoto, the country’s capital. Oya no Takesuke additionally considered Toyo-o indolent and reckless, just as awful at overseeing cash. ToyO-O was more than once portrayed as an attractive youth. It was inferred this was viewed as a female quality in a man and was looked downward on. Truth be told, Toyo-o’s attractive features pulled in the evil spirit, Manago, who was as a rule a gigantic snake with heavenly powers. It was likewise suggested that his ladylike characteristics, like his looks and absence of tyrant conduct, were what made him so effectively defenseless to Manago’s heavenly spells. Toyo-o has three significant encounters with Manago and each time it took masculine conduct to dispose of her. For instance, Toyo-o initially met Manago in an angler’s hovel in the town of Miwagasaki, where they had both taken a safe house from an abrupt tempest. A few days after the fact she was terrified away by the samurai, the Japanese proportionate to the police, who show the manly characteristics that were esteemed by their way of life. She was drawn closer by Kose no Kumagashi, an enormous and brave samurai, in her home before she vanished in the applause of thunder. Toyo-o next experienced Manago in Tsubaichi while remaining with his sister. This time Manago prevailed with regards to persuading Toyo-o to wed her. In any case, she was again scared away, this time by Tagima no Kibito, a minister at the Yamato Shrine. He happened upon the family while they were picnicking and perceived Manago and her servant, Maroya, for what they truly were. The two ladies had to jump into a cascade so as to get away. Their takeoff was again set apart by heavenly action when a dark cloud and downpour showed up at the spot where they vanished. It was after this showdown that Tagima no Kibito prompted Toyo-o to receive ‘an all the more masculine and ‘progressively decided so as to repel’ her. Toyo-o’s third and last significant showdown with Manago happened in Shiba. He had hitched Tomiko, the little girl of Shoji, before finding that Manago had her body. So as to be freed of her for good, he had to quit fleeing, which had been his technique for managing her up to this point and becoming fearless. He is compelled to go up against her, stunt her, and afterward spread her head with a surplice and press down hard with everything that is in him until she quit moving. In doing as such, he exhibited the manly characteristics that his general public wanted from him and was at long last ready to for all time free himself of the evil spirit, Manago. In the end, both Candide and Toyo-o were enlightened.

Candide was written by the French author Voltaire in 1759 in his attempt at exposing many aspects of religious and social injustices within Europe, as he saw it, through the naïve and simple protagonist Candide and his ever-optimistic mentor Pangloss. From religion to the aristocracy, Voltaire satirizes various aspects of European life throughout the period identified as the enlightenment. He also indirectly states that life in 18th-century Europe was often filled with corruption and flaws from within all levels of society.

The extract that is in focus is taken from chapter 20 of Voltaire’s Candide. Throughout this scene both Candide and his traveling companion, Martin philosophically debates the subject of evil and how it affects the world through both their own unique perspectives. The trials and tribulations of Candide and his various traveling companions are told to the reader through a narrator who speaks mostly in the omniscient third person while focusing on the perspective and experiences of Candide. Voltaire uses his writing style as an anonymous satirical narrator to give the reader a fully immersive viewpoint. Voltaire’s narrative has a satirical and ironic tone. The narration shows us a picture of the most extreme human depravity and cruelty while at the same time discussing trivialities like the weather!

In order to highlight important characteristics within a primary character, an author could include a secondary character who contrasts in important ways with the former.

The negativity that comes from Martin’s character appears to be a complete reversal to Candide’s ever-optimistic persona. We can see this strong throughout this chapter as they both attempt to pass the time while on board by having a philosophical/theological debate about good and evil that they have both witnessed in their lifetimes. Candide interestingly does not become despondent regarding all of the bad things that have happened to him so far but continues to believe that this is the best of all possible worlds, as he declares ’And yet there is some good in the world’ (Voltaire, in A230 Assessment Guide, 2018, line 35).

Part of the skill of Voltaire’s storytelling is how he manages to engage Candide’s personality with the reader. As a reluctant hero, Candide is forced to come to terms with his ever-changing search for his beloved Cunégonde, Voltaire achieves Candide’s character progression using a coming-of-age style of narrative, or Bildungsroman (OED online, 2018). Where the reader is able to see the progression of Candide’s physical and spiritual growth as he continues on his quest for his beloved. A portion of Candide’s moral growth started with Professor Pangloss, at the castle, but carries on with Martin.

Martin, however, is a pessimist, and it is through his negative perspective that allows Voltaire brings Candide’s positive outlook into a clear view. Martin is a deep thinker who provides an intellectual argument for his beliefs. Candide seeks to hear Martin’s point of view on various topics, not out of a desire to debate, but rather to learn. It is through this section of the narrative that the reader could find sympathy with either side of this debate, it is possible to emphasize with both characters as they try to relate to each other. However, Martin’s ideas could be used as a context for Voltaire’s ironic attack on the optimistic beliefs of the Enlightenment.

Candide asks Martin’s opinion ‘What is your idea of physical evil and moral evil?’ (A230 Assessment Guide, 2018, line 14) A reader would be capable of forming an opinion quite readily on this innocently sounding question that Candide poses. This clever form of a narrative by Voltaire helps to draw in and engage the reader to think about their own personal responses. Just as Martin is ready to answer with his own slightly bleak view on life, as readers, we are left to ponder the evils that could be encountered from day to day within our own modern lives.

Martin answers Candide’s question by telling him of being accused of being a Socinian, who were a sect during the 16th century who ‘denied the divinity of Jesus’ (OED online, 2018), of which Martin quickly denies being and further declares following the beliefs of the Manicheans who believed in the ‘primeval conflict between light and darkness (OED online, 2018). Denial seems to be an inherent quality to Martin’s character as the Socinian faith didn’t believe in the absolute power of forgiveness through the divinity of Christ. Manicheans solved the problem of evil by believing in two equally powerful forces in conflict. Evil exists because God simply doesn’t have the power to eliminate it. Yet again this poses the question of denial in Martin’s world-wearied view as he too disbelieves in God yet, Voltaire brings a sense of absurdity to Martin’s argument as his convictions are obsolete due to the religion already credited as nonexistent at the time of his writing Candide (OED online, 2018).

There is almost a comical tension between the philosophy of Pangloss, where evil by definition is good, and Martin’s dualistic point of view where evil is prevalent in mankind. Ironically, Martin’s belief in a dead religion comes directly from his observed experience, whereas Candide’s belief in optimism comes from books and his mentor Pangloss. From all this understanding we are then able to see why Candide answers Martin’s dogmatic beliefs by declaring him of ‘having the devil in him’ (A230 Assessment guide, line 20). Martin doesn’t respond negatively to Candide’s accusation but carries straight on with his defense which is powerful in its convictions and brings an interlude of seriousness to the novel with its strong imagery and message.

We have to try to understand Voltaire’s character, Martin as we witness his almost confessional dialogue when he tells Candide that he had sadly been robbed by his wife and beaten by his son and deserted by his daughter at the very end of chapter 19 (Voltaire, 1998, p. 57). From this confession does the reader find sympathy for his convictions throughout the scene that is in question?

From my own understanding, I find his lengthy speech to be both relevant to Voltaire’s time and when applied to contemporary issues relevant to events that are occurring throughout the world.

A reader could consider if the voice of Martin is also Voltaire’s. As the author was using his novel to directly critique the social inequalities of his time, could we consider Voltaire’s voice being used through Martin’s? The style of his writing at this point is a first-person narrative and he uses strong metaphorical language to show the reader his pessimistic but truthful opinions. We already know that he speaks from experience and with this experience comes a conviction in the lack of faith in people. He backs up his disbelief as he recounts ‘A million assassins in a regimental formation run from one end of Europe to the other’ (A230 Assessment guide, lines 27-28). This is strong language when referring to an army as assassins, however uncomfortable it may seem there is a truth to this statement as we can draw comparisons between an army who are paid and assassins who kill for profit.

Martin’s speech carries examples of how and why he has come to view the world in the way he does. Again, we are reminded of how we live now and how similar we are in contextual comparison to his time. Martin’s quite chilling declaration ‘Everywhere the weak loathe the strong, before whom they cringe’ (A230 Assessment guide, 2018, lines 26-27) This is evident even more nowadays where we have huge class divides and social unrest. The class divisions during Voltaire’s time of writing were also immense with indulgent rich at one end of the scale and people who died from lack of food at the other. From this, a reader should be able to draw comparisons with some of the themes set out by Voltaire.

It is possible to draw a comparison with Candide’s expulsion from his home of Westphalia, at the start of his journey, with all of its apparent perfection and with the garden where he and his friends finally call home. The book ends with him seemingly denouncing his philosophical research on good and evil and finding a type of happiness simply from gardening. This need to ‘cultivate our garden’ (Voltaire, 1998, p. 100) and tend to the things that you have control over how that neither optimism nor pessimism is entirely valid in the world. Candide’s final philosophy reveals a middle ground in his newly found maturity, that excludes excessive idealism, which is a rather stoic stance on life.

Voltaire ends his novel, Candide with the titular character practically declaring a lesson that has the feel of a parable intended for all of his readers in his final realization of his coming of age. From this lesson of ‘tending to your garden’ Candide should have learned that life within the castle was as near to physical perfection as heaven but, in the end, Candide concludes that using reason and hard work could improve the world and our lives but, it took him and his friends a strenuous circumnavigation around the world to end up in their own idea of spiritual perfection, a garden which could be reminiscent of biblical Eden.

Slavery was an economic and cultural standard in this era when these two stories were written: Oroonoko by Aphra Ben and Candide by Voltaire.

In the story of Oroonoko; or, The Royal Slave, the captain of a transport vessel persuades Oroonoko to board the ship under the pretense that he would be reunited with his partner and later delivers him into slavery. Not only was he forced into slavery, Imoinda, his beloved companion also is marketed into slavery. Oroonoko later states to the other unsuspecting passengers on the ship, “And why my dear friends and fellow-sufferers, should we be slaves to an unknown people? Have they vanquished us nobly in fight? Have they won us in honorable battle? And are we by the chance of war become their slaves?” (Beiner). In this quote Oroonoko is stating that they were convinced under a false pretense to board the ship under less than noble design. Do they really deserve to be treated in this way? Agitated, he becomes more concerned for the well-being of Imoinda and his people . She is carrying their offspring and he did not want his child to be born into this uncourageous slavery. So, what choices should he consider? Feeling hopeless at this point he decides death would be the only solution that would re-establish any form of his freedom and self-respect.

In the story of Candide, slavery also was an established occurrence in this time frame. Candide interacts with a woman named Cunegonde with whom the story develops. The couple is separated by her family. Cunegonde tells how she escaped death during a political overthrow but became a mistress . There was also another character that was referred to as the “old woman” who had experienced slavery. She truly believes she has it the worst out of all of them. Going on with her story, she exclaims that she was once a very beautiful young woman. Then suddenly her world turned upside down as she was captured by pirates and eventually raped. Adding to her humiliation, they cut off one of her buttocks and ate it for dinner. After telling her story the old woman exclaimed, “I should like to know which is worse: to be ravished a hundred times by pirates, and have a buttock cut off, and run the gauntlet of the Bulgarians, and be flogged and hanged in an auto-da-fe, and be dissected… or simply to sit here and do nothing?” (Voltaire). She could not decide if this experience was better or worse than simply sitting there and doing nothing or basically surviving.

In conclusion, slavery was all around. People were being tricked and immersed into slavery all the time. Although this was a miserable occurrence, everyone learned a lesson from these experiences. Justifying Candide’s optimism, if they had not been sold into slavery, they would not have all met each other and learned a little from one another’s stories. Each character learned they were not alone or immune and it gave them a sense of hope to survive together.

After numerous adventures around the world that Pangloss had taught him were “the best of all possible worlds,” Candide gained wisdom and reanalyzed the philosophy of optimism, that whatever happens in the world is for the best (Voltaire 2). He saw and experienced slavery, war, executions, dismemberments, torture, and many other evils during his travels. In the end, Candide discovered that it is better to improve one’s own “garden” instead of trying to make a mark on the world. Candide’s statement about the garden is partially a response to Pangloss’s optimism, but the broader meaning is simply a statement on how to live.

Throughout Candide, Voltaire explored Candide’s transformation from optimism, represented by Pangloss, to pessimistic realism, represented by Martin. Both Pangloss and Martin influenced Candide, who maintained his optimistic ideas even through rough circumstances, only to realize in the end that life is not perfect and it’s only decent when you work to make the best of it. The philosophy of optimism appears throughout the whole story and it represents positivity and believes that the world is the best it could possibly be. According to this theory, God planned everything and everyone’s lives in the best way, and whatever happens within his plan is for the best. The downfall of optimism, however, is that its followers struggle with making their own decisions as they tend to simply let life happen to them. Not until the end of the book did Candide realize that he could have a say in his own life.

Martin represented pessimism, and he embraced the world and tried to gain lessons from it. He survived many terrible things, but he maintained the attitude that “it’s always a good idea to keep hoping” while not expecting life to get better (67). Although optimism and pessimism are two contrasting views, they do not clash with each other in the story. They both influenced Candide, who eventually realized that only hard work brings rewards and that living your life always looking forward to the future never brings fortune. Blind belief in optimism does not help the follower and even promotes naivety and ignorance. Even Pangloss could not always support his theory. An example of this occurs when Candide asked him, “while you were being hanged, dissected, lashed, and were rowing in the galleys, did you continue to think that all went as well as could be?” Pangloss responded, “I still think as I always did…I’m a philosopher, and it would be inappropriate for me to change my mind” (75). Constant happiness does not exist and it is futile to believe a philosophy that cannot be supported by real-world experience. Candide transformed from a hopeless young man who always needed advice from others to a person who decided for himself that hard work was the key to a rewarding life.

In the final passage of the novel, Pangloss was attempting to prove his theory that they lived in the best of all possible worlds, but instead of believing his theory, Candide simply said, “That’s well said…but we must work our land” (Voltaire 79). In literature, gardens symbolize nutrition and welfare for human beings. Their cultivation and success determine the fates and lives of the gardeners. Well-cultivated gardens promote fortune and health, while neglected gardens bring about hunger and despair. Working in a garden also gives the gardener physical strength and keeps them from being alone and idle. When they settled on their plot of land in Turkey, Candide and the others could control their destinies in a way that they could not before. Instead of living at the mercy of worldly evils, they literally would be reaping what they sowed. Understandably, it is surprising that this argument against optimism is presented as a happy ending. It can even be difficult to understand how this ending does not support optimism since Pangloss said, “all events are linked together in this…if you had not been driven out of a beautiful castle…if you had not been arrested by the Inquisition…you would not be sitting here” (79). But when Candide said that they should focus on cultivating their land, he implied that gardening left no time for philosophical conjectures and everyone would be happier if they simply stopped theorizing and began working.

Candide realized that cultivating one’s garden was a better option than trying to make a fortune in the wider world. On a superficial level, Candide did literally mean they should tend their gardens and avoid philosophizing, and they would be happier. However, he also meant more than that. He believed that they needed to surround themselves with family and close friends while staying busy pursuing and cultivating their talents and gifts. Candide thought that they could do more for the world by concentrating quietly on their own gifts rather than trying to get rich, marry someone beautiful, and make an egotistic mark on the world. He rejected Pangloss’s philosophy that they needed to accept whatever happened because it was for the best, and he instead believed that life is what you make it and you can find happiness wherever you are.

The concept of the garden shares many similarities to El Dorado, but Candide overlooked it earlier in his journey. He found a city with gold in the streets where all the people got along happily, and few would have hesitated to live in this kingdom. However, he never saw it as a place to settle down because he dreamed of becoming rich and searching for his beautiful Cunegonde. The king of El Dorado even advised Candide, “I know my country is nothing special; but when you find yourself in reasonable circumstances, wherever you may be, you should settle down there,” but since he was constantly in search of the best of possible worlds and always trying to improve his circumstances, he did not view El Dorado as a place he could truly settle down (41). He thought that money and marriage would bring happiness, and since money was worthless in El Dorado, he left the city in search of Cunegonde with a large sum of money. Later, Candide was tricked out of his riches and I believe this lesson helped him realize the value of cultivating his garden at the end of the story.

Another event that changed Candide’s perspective and helped him let go of optimism was eating dinner at the house of the Old Turk. Candide marveled at the large dinner that contained very fine food and assumed that the Turk was rich. The Turk simply told him that he and his daughters live a fine life by cultivating their garden of 20 acres, as “work keeps at bay three dreadful evils: boredom, depravity, and poverty” (78). They were able to keep themselves busy, be content with what they had, and lead comfortable life. This dinner, as well as the lesson learned in El Dorado, helped Candide to mature and think beyond the philosophy that Pangloss constantly spouted. Once he was able to think for himself, his life became simpler and more satisfying because he no longer had to adjust the things that happened to him to fit his optimistic worldview. The wisdom and simplicity of the Old Turk helped Candide realize that he was chasing a dream he would never reach. He would never be a king or become wealthy, but most importantly, he learned that those things do not make the best of all possible worlds. The money he once had was gone, his wife was no longer beautiful, and the only way to carry on and forget about his painful past was to work.

Candide learned that optimism was not a sound worldview. His lessons learned in El Dorado and at the Old Turk’s house help him realize that his world is probably not the best of all possible worlds. If it was, he might have had a palace, stayed in El Dorado, or maybe even never been kicked out of his Westphalia home in the first place. At the end of his journey, he had almost nothing left except his friends, so he abandoned the optimism of Pangloss and created his own garden. This was a new beginning where everyone was equal and their primary concern was working in the garden. It may seem as if Candide’s adventures were worthless, because they brought on pain and suffering, but he learned a valuable lesson in the end that life is not what happens to you, it is the choices you make every single day.

A Humorous novel Candide, printed in 1759, is the till date best-known work by Voltaire. It is a savage censure of philosophical positivity as upheld by the German philosopher Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz—that uncovers a universe of terror and sin. ‘Candide’ is a narration about the journey of Candide, who walks the world over, going starting with one setback and then onto the next, at the same time he feels that his passivity towards life is being tested. Voltaire’s Candide was subjected to different outrages of the mid-eighteenth century, most outstandingly the overwhelming Lisbon earthquake, the episode of the awful Seven Years’ War in the German states, and the out-of-line execution of the English Admiral John Byng.

At the opening of the novel, Candide is compelled to leave the castle in light of the fact that he has been discovered kissing the baron’s girl, the lovely Cunegonde. The youthful and innocent Candide, educated in this hopeful theory by his coach doctor Pangloss, who asserts that ‘all is for the best……. in this most ideal all things considered,’ (Arouet) initially believes in his tutor’s theory but as he realizes the hardship of life, devil of war and poverty, the duplicity of the church he starts to suspect that thesis. The other evils he and his partners has to deal with include; battle, rape, burglary, wreckages, earthquakes, and slavery.

As Candide and his companions travel Europe and South America, they witness and even in some cases experience untold instances of evil conduct.

Not long after literally being kicked out of the castle, Candide witnesses a fight between two nations that outcomes in absolute slaughter and aggressive violence, including assault. While getting away to Holland, he and James (Candide’s friend) somehow meet Dr. Pangloss, who is himself in a bad physical state. From the ever-hopeful philosopher, Candide discovers that his previous home in Germany has been burnt down and that those inside have been slaughtered by the Bulgarian armed force. So, they both travel together. Pangloss has lost part of his nose and one eye to syphilis and still keeps on arguing that all is going great, in spite of such a misfortune.

James, Pangloss, and Candide begin for Lisbon. The ship they are using for the voyage is destroyed in a storm off the bank of Portugal. James is suffocated to death, yet Candide and Pangloss swim to shore, where they arrive without a moment to spare to encounter the earth-shaking of 1755. Not exclusively are they gotten in Portugal amid this catastrophic event, but they additionally turned out to be trapped in the Inquisition. The leaders of Lisbon, both mainstream and religious, choose to put down the population whose evil brings terror, and Candide and Pangloss are among the blamed. Pangloss is sentenced to be hanged, however, Candid is just saved by the return and intervention of Cunegonde. Pangloss might have died.

Candide, Cunegonde, and an elderly person escape to South America, where they are robbed by someone.

Despite the fact that these encounters step by step dissolve Candide’s idealistic conviction, he and his colleagues show a hunger for survival that gives them trust in a generally critical timing. When they all started together to live a simple life on a little ranch, they find that the mystery of bliss is ‘to develop one’s greenhouse,’ and not in thinking some earth thesis.

Hammering at the last nail, the novel by Voltaire brutally parodies science, theory, religion, government, and writing.

References

1. Sarah Dillon. “Candide”. March 07, 2019 https://www.britannica.com/topic/Candide-by-Voltaire
2. Arouet, Francois Marie, and James K. Lowers. “CliffsNotes on Candide”. 11 Apr 2019 https://www.cliffsnotes.com/literature/c/candide/book-summary
3. Ed. Steven G. Kellman. ‘Candide – Summary (masterpieces of world literature)”. eNotes.com, Inc. 2009 http://www.enotes.com/topics/candide#summary-summary-summary-the-work
4. Ed. Laurence W. Mazzeno. ‘Candide – Summary (Critical Survey of Literature for Students)” .eNotes.com, Inc. 2010 http://www.enotes.com/topics/candide#summary-summary-summary-the-story

Throughout Voltaire’s Candide, a multitude of themes became evident as one progressed through the narrative. These themes were essential in provoking thought and consideration amongst readers, as well as increasing the interest level that motivated the audience to dive into the meanings of this literary work. The recurrence of concepts that were woven into the narrative, such as wealth, optimism, and organized religion, showed Voltaire’s opinions towards these subjects and the thought processes that a multitude of people held during the period in which he lived. The first theme of interest is wealth.

Voltaire portrays gaining money in Candide as a temporary fulfillment of happiness that will eventually cause the feeling of sorrow to overcome joy. A prime example of this theme occurred through the sudden influx but gradual depletion of Candide’s wealth (Cuffe, (2005)). When he gained the riches from El Dorado, he was in a state of ecstasy, as he was hopeful that this gain would fix the worst of his problems. However, this was not the case, as it eventually caused him to become even more unhappy than when he was penniless at the start of his wild adventures. It could also be said that Candide’s money caused his life to become more complicated, as it attracted people who enacted a veil of false generosity to him in exchange for his riches. Other examples of how wealth can be a double-edged sword include Count Prococurate’s generalized boredom with the presence of valued works of art and books and Brother Giroflee’s and Paquette’s continued misery after Candide donated some of his wealth (Cuffe, (2005)). Voltaire’s interpretation of this influx of wealth is that although poverty is an unfortunate circumstance, experiencing an increase in fortune afflicts the victim with as many problems as it solves and leads him/her down a complicated path of misery and unhappiness. The second theme of interest is optimism.

Pangloss and Candide supported the philosophical notion that the world exists in the best of conditions and that everything that happens in the world is for the best because it was created by an inherently benevolent God (Cuffe, (2005)). This idea, which they adopted from several philosophers of that time, also stated that evil is technically nonexistent because its existence would go against the notion of God’s benevolence. At the beginning of the novel, Candide strongly supports Pangloss’s optimism. However, as their journey within the narrative progressed, they were placed in certain situations that served to gradually cause Candide’s belief to waver (Cuffe, (2005)). Their exposure to flogging, rape, robbery, executions, natural disasters, and disease have no element of optimism to them and points towards the world’s cruelty and God’s indifference towards mankind. Voltaire emphasized these random and horrific acts to expose the absurd justifications that Pangloss would attempt to make, as they were both nonsensical and failed to account for the needless sufferings of ordinary people. One example of this occurred when he prevented Candide from saving Jacques the Anabaptist from drowning because Lisbon Harbor was seemingly created so that he could die (Cuffe, (2005)). As these chaotic acts increase in frequency, even Pangloss’s belief in the effort of his arguments begins to become disillusioned, as he finally starts to partially believe their validity. This points to the idea that Pangloss is not as intelligent or as experienced in these matters as the other characters in the book, all of whom have reached a more pessimistic conclusion about the world and its inhabitants. For example, the old woman’s experiences of the capability of humans to commit atrocious acts of evil allowed conclusions to be made about her wisdom and credibility (Cuffe, (2005)). This emphasizes the importance of reaching conclusions based on concrete and verifiable evidence and the dangers of choosing who to believe. It is important to note that possessing experience does not mean that one can automatically go about improving the world. For example, Martin, who has experienced various acts of human evil himself, is blindsided by this pessimism, so much so that he only complains about it and withdraws instead of using this knowledge to try to better the world and the people around him. The third theme of interest is organized religion.

One of Voltaire’s more concentrated targets of disagreement, this theme is constantly depicted as being corrupt and containing no morals. He tended to exaggerate his mockery of religion to both show how irrational extreme beliefs in religion can be and imply that there is a large gap between the intention of religion and how it is practiced by people. Most of the religious figures in Candide are depicted as corrupt and immoral hypocrites who are less inclined to help other people besides themselves. Some examples of these figures in the text included a Dutch orator who cared more about imposing his religious doctrine on people than actually helping them out, the Inquisitor who kept Cunegonde as a mistress, the Jesuit baron with homosexual tendencies, and the Franciscan friar who stole Cunegonde’s jewels despite an oath of poverty that members of his order were forced to take (Cuffe, (2005)). An exception to this would be Jacques the Anabaptist, although he held an unpopular religious belief and was subjected to persecution (Cuffe, (2005)). Due to the characteristics and power that these religious figures possessed, they also engaged in inhumane acts of religious oppression against those who did not believe in their doctrines. Examples of the immoral and horrific acts that they committed were the Inquisition persecuting Pangloss for expressing different ideas, persecuting Candide for merely listening to these ideas, and throwing Don Issachar’s corpse into the refuse pile because he was Jewish (Cuffe, (2005)). Despite these oppressive actions, Voltaire did not wholly condemn the practice of religious behavior, as was evidenced by the inclusion of the generous and benevolent Jacques the Anabaptist. Because of this conveyance of past values, today’s readers can try to understand where the characters are coming from and compare and contrast their beliefs with the beliefs of today.

For example, the idea that wealth can cause more complicated issues within a person’s life can cause people today to think wisely about how to utilize the money that they have. Candide’s loss of his money could also inspire carefulness among the audience about how to perceive the intentions of other people when it comes to monetary loans. Optimism is still relevant today because how one perceives this belief is how one tends to view the world and go about daily life. The incorporation of organized religion in Candide is still relevant today as a means to judge whether certain places of worship are either built for the betterment of their followers or to increase the influx of money into the preacher’s pockets. All of these culminate into a better understanding of the values that past societies held and serve as a revealing and engaging point of reference for today’s readers.

Throughout Voltaire’s Candide, a multitude of themes became evident as one progressed through the narrative. These themes were essential in provoking thought and consideration amongst readers, as well as increasing the interest level that motivated the audience to dive into the meanings of this literary work. The recurrence of concepts that were woven into the narrative, such as wealth, optimism, and organized religion, showed Voltaire’s opinions towards these subjects and the thought processes that a multitude of people held during the period in which he lived. The first theme of interest is wealth.

Voltaire portrays gaining money in Candide as a temporary fulfillment of happiness that will eventually cause the feeling of sorrow to overcome joy. A prime example of this theme occurred through the sudden influx but gradual depletion of Candide’s wealth (Cuffe, (2005)). When he gained the riches from El Dorado, he was in a state of ecstasy, as he was hopeful that this gain would fix the worst of his problems. However, this was not the case, as it eventually caused him to become even more unhappy than when he was penniless at the start of his wild adventures. It could also be said that Candide’s money caused his life to become more complicated, as it attracted people who enacted a veil of false generosity to him in exchange for his riches. Other examples of how wealth can be a double-edged sword include Count Prococurate’s generalized boredom with the presence of valued works of art and books and Brother Giroflee’s and Paquette’s continued misery after Candide donated some of his wealth (Cuffe, (2005)). Voltaire’s interpretation of this influx of wealth is that although poverty is an unfortunate circumstance, experiencing an increase in fortune afflicts the victim with as many problems as it solves and leads him/her down a complicated path of misery and unhappiness. The second theme of interest is optimism.

Pangloss and Candide supported the philosophical notion that the world exists in the best of conditions and that everything that happens in the world is for the best because it was created by an inherently benevolent God (Cuffe, (2005)). This idea, which they adopted from several philosophers of that time, also stated that evil is technically nonexistent because its existence would go against the notion of God’s benevolence. At the beginning of the novel, Candide strongly supports Pangloss’s optimism. However, as their journey within the narrative progressed, they were placed in certain situations that served to gradually cause Candide’s belief to waver (Cuffe, (2005)). Their exposure to flogging, rape, robbery, executions, natural disasters, and disease have no element of optimism to them and points towards the world’s cruelty and God’s indifference towards mankind. Voltaire emphasized these random and horrific acts to expose the absurd justifications that Pangloss would attempt to make, as they were both nonsensical and failed to account for the needless sufferings of ordinary people. One example of this occurred when he prevented Candide from saving Jacques the Anabaptist from drowning because Lisbon Harbor was seemingly created so that he could die (Cuffe, (2005)). As these chaotic acts increase in frequency, even Pangloss’s belief in the effort of his arguments begins to become disillusioned, as he finally starts to partially believe their validity. This points to the idea that Pangloss is not as intelligent or as experienced in these matters as the other characters in the book, all of whom have reached a more pessimistic conclusion about the world and its inhabitants. For example, the old woman’s experiences of the capability of humans to commit atrocious acts of evil allowed conclusions to be made about her wisdom and credibility (Cuffe, (2005)). This emphasizes the importance of reaching conclusions based on concrete and verifiable evidence and the dangers of choosing who to believe. It is important to note that possessing experience does not mean that one can automatically go about improving the world. For example, Martin, who has experienced various acts of human evil himself, is blindsided by this pessimism, so much so that he only complains about it and withdraws instead of using this knowledge to try to better the world and the people around him. The third theme of interest is organized religion.

One of Voltaire’s more concentrated targets of disagreement, this theme is constantly depicted as being corrupt and containing no morals. He tended to exaggerate his mockery of religion to both show how irrational extreme beliefs in religion can be and imply that there is a large gap between the intention of religion and how it is practiced by people. Most of the religious figures in Candide are depicted as corrupt and immoral hypocrites who are less inclined to help other people besides themselves. Some examples of these figures in the text included a Dutch orator who cared more about imposing his religious doctrine on people than actually helping them out, the Inquisitor who kept Cunegonde as a mistress, the Jesuit baron with homosexual tendencies, and the Franciscan friar who stole Cunegonde’s jewels despite an oath of poverty that members of his order were forced to take (Cuffe, (2005)). An exception to this would be Jacques the Anabaptist, although he held an unpopular religious belief and was subjected to persecution (Cuffe, (2005)). Due to the characteristics and power that these religious figures possessed, they also engaged in inhumane acts of religious oppression against those who did not believe in their doctrines. Examples of the immoral and horrific acts that they committed were the Inquisition persecuting Pangloss for expressing different ideas, persecuting Candide for merely listening to these ideas, and throwing Don Issachar’s corpse into the refuse pile because he was Jewish (Cuffe, (2005)). Despite these oppressive actions, Voltaire did not wholly condemn the practice of religious behavior, as was evidenced by the inclusion of the generous and benevolent Jacques the Anabaptist. Because of this conveyance of past values, today’s readers can try to understand where the characters are coming from and compare and contrast their beliefs with the beliefs of today.

For example, the idea that wealth can cause more complicated issues within a person’s life can cause people today to think wisely about how to utilize the money that they have. Candide’s loss of his money could also inspire carefulness among the audience about how to perceive the intentions of other people when it comes to monetary loans. Optimism is still relevant today because how one perceives this belief is how one tends to view the world and go about daily life. The incorporation of organized religion in Candide is still relevant today as a means to judge whether certain places of worship are either built for the betterment of their followers or to increase the influx of money into the preacher’s pockets. All of these culminate into a better understanding of the values that past societies held and serve as a revealing and engaging point of reference for today’s readers.

Introduction

Françoise Voltaire is a great French philosopher of the Enlightenment age. Candide is one of the works written by Voltaire that makes modern society think about inexhaustible themes of his ideas and their impact on modern society, governments, and interactions of people and cultures. As the picaresque novel is based on Leibnitz’s philosophy of optimism which suggests the idea of the perfectness of the world and everything in the world, to be more exact, Voltaire introduces ironic ideas concerning life and its imperfectness. Candide influenced greatly the life of Voltaire’s contemporaries as it opposed the earthquake in Lisbon to the concept of the perfect world.

The novel introduces ideas about doubts on the optimistic theory taught by Dr. Pangloss, and sometimes “Dr. Pangloss was right when he told me that all is for the best in this world” (Voltaire 9). The work is centered on the theories and their use in everyday life; the main character thinks about whether optimism is appropriate in different situations. Sometimes optimistic beliefs can change our lives as it can be traced in the adventures of Candide.

Lessons for modern living

The novel consists of numerous adventures experienced by the main character. It is natural that a young man doubts the world’s perspectives. He does not think that the world is perfect or, as Dr. Pangloss suggests, “…all was for the best in this world” (Voltaire 19). The relationship between people is one of the most intricate spheres of human life. We encounter difficulties in communication, socially and in the workplace. Is anyone capable to say that obstacles make our relationships better than they are in the current moment? How can one possess optimistic views without being confident in his or her strength to overcome those obstacles? People in the poem meet the main character, Candide, when he faces hardships of life; they help him and he helps them then. Their relationships cannot be considered simple or extremely peaceful, though they have a common goal of staying alive and are ready to collaborate to reach this definite goal.

Relationships between Candide and Dr. Pangloss are based on the teacher-student treatment, Cunegonde is a love interest of the main character, and other people encountered by Candide influence his life in some way (some of them want to kill or punish him, while others rescue him and heal his wounds. Some of the ideas presented in the novel seem to be rather pessimistic than realistic ones, suchlike “…nothing could be more just than to treat your enemies that way [kindly] for natural law teaches us to kill” (Voltaire 43); it helps us to realize that Voltaire introduced Candide as a young man who holds to optimistic views, though all his adventures make the readers believe that his fortune does not presuppose that the everything in the world is perfect.

Another theme that can be considered influential towards modern society is its culture and our interaction with our government and with the governments and cultures elsewhere on the planet. As you can see, the society of the modern world consists mostly of people who are representatives of different nations and ethnic groups. Candide appears to be among people of different social classes and ethnic origins. The 21^st century looks the same as Candide’s environment where people have different goals but are ready to make common efforts to reach something more important.

The global community attempts to unite its efforts in order to fight world terrorism, global warming, dangerous pandemic viruses, starvation, and catastrophes. However, this union does not seem to last long as well as the problems can be solved and there would be no need to unite efforts. As far as there are some problems in the world (hardships in Candide’s life), there will exist unions between people who have little in common and who attempt to reach their own goals (people who will try to kill Candide or those healing his wounds).

One more lesson for living in modern society is that when one does not seem interesting to others anymore, he or she is repudiated. Cunegonde was a beautiful lady and the love interest of Candide but at the end of his adventures “At the bottom of his heart Candide had no desire to marry Cunegonde” (Voltaire 95). It means that she was interesting to him only when she was beautiful and he did not want to marry her when she was ugly. Modern society includes numerous examples when cooperation was impossible because one side (its conditions, properties, or value) was of little interest for another one (more powerful and independent). Cooperation is the action that takes place when both sides are concerned, while Candide was forced to marry Cunegonde because his word was a word of a gentleman.

Conclusion

The last phrase pronounced by Candide in the novel suggests that “…we must cultivate our garden” (Voltaire 99). This means that relationships between people, socially and in the workplace, culture and our interaction with our government and with the governments and cultures elsewhere on the planet have to be established and developed. Garden is an area which should be cultivated in order to get a good harvest, while relationships between people and unions of people should be developed to reach common goals. The philosophy of Voltaire’s Candide makes people think about their views and influence of circumstances on our life and beliefs.

Works Cited

Voltaire, Françoise. Candide. New York: Bantam Dell, 2003.

Although political satires do not withstand the test of time, and are quickly forgotten whenever there is change in political regime, the Candide story has defied the odd of time and continues to puzzle scholars and leaders. This is a story written down by Voltaire whose main motive of writing was to capture and ridicule the political inclinations of the time, illustrating the political and philosophical controversies of the eighteenth century.

This story brings out clearly the misery and political upheavals of the time, and thus to the general literature lover, this is book that demonstrates that we live in a much better and well-organized world. The contemporary modern world is probably the best possible world, taking into account as represented in the book, misery, strife, chaos, and betrayal that are witnessed.

The author, in writing the story of Candide, Voltaire was inspired by a number of actual historical events. For example the Seven Years’ War and the earthquake that hit the city of Lisbon in 1755. Candide is thus a story that has significant historical truth and importance (Ayer, 1986).

As a young man, Candide lives in a castle where he falls in love with the Baron’s daughter, Lady Cunegonde. When Cunegonde finds that Pangloss is romantically involved with Paquette, she is inspired to also get romantically involved with Candide. In so doing, Candide is thrown out of the castle and is unfortunately taken hostage to be recruited into military service by the Bulgers. From there the story of Candide unfolds as he travels from one place to the other.

He reunites with Pangloss, his tutor, who has now become a beggar and tells Candide how the castle was attacked, and everyone taken into slavery including his lover Cunegonde. In one of his travels he is arrested and as he is about to be executed, an earthquake emerges which avails him the chance to escape. Luckily, he comes across his lover. He, his lover and his tutor decide to escape Europe into the Americas.

In the South America the turmoil is the same as in Europe. The Europeans in the area oppress the local people, displacing them and physically abusing them. The Europeans are hated as they degrade the local inhabitants, terming them as barbaric and uncivilized. They subjugate the local people, as these Europeans possess superior weapons. In one of his outing, Candide comes across women being chased by monkeys.

Not knowing these women were lovers with the monkeys, he shoots the two monkeys. This is a sign of how Europeans degraded the people of the Americas. Having killed a Jesuit and worn his robes, Candide and Cacambo are captured by the native inhabitants of the said area. These local inhabitants are referred to as Oreillons. Although some Europeans had been harsh on the local people, these local people do not treat their captives harshly. In fact, they release them upon being convinced it was a case of mistaken identity.

This is similar to El Dorado. Candide and Cacambo are welcomed in this place and treated nicely by the king of the area. However, Candide does not wish to stay as he wishes to look for his lover who had gone missing. The king generously assists Candide; who is also given provisions and money to aid him in his quest. However, not all people are friendly towards visitors. This is illustrated as the two are occasionally raided on their way.

The European administrators who have caused havoc in Europe with their conservative and harsh rules have continued with this trend even in the Americas. After his sheep are stolen in Surinam, Candide find himself in trouble as the administrator heavily fines him after being accused for petulance. The administrator is of a Dutch origin (Aldridge, 1975).

Women in this story are portrayed as sexual objects and don’t play a major role in the events of the society like politics. Critics of the topic have voiced the way the story is portrayed. The protagonists of the story are perceived as relying heavily on the optimism of Leibniz yet they are in pathetic state.

They are not realistic or pragmatic something that could not have been possible. This is because most of the time, they are involved in life threatening events yet they never see it that way. They are also involved in the turmoil as they kill other people, but do not consider themselves as villains.

The story is also criticized of being too fictitious for a historical story. The main character, Candide, escapes earthquake that destroys those who are around him. This is not possible as earthquakes leave devastating effects, with survival being next to impossible especially in the worst hard hit areas. Candide is able to travel the world yet he had no expertise or money to do so (Mason, 1992).

The story of Candide is of historical importance in that it depicts events that actually took place during the eighteenth century. The author uses the character to show the European colonialism and brutality in the Americas. The brutality is met to the local natives who were, in the contrary, peaceful and friendly people.

This story also shows the history of the various European nations, from Britain to Portugal to the Dutch, among many others. It also shows the story of man who is relentless in finding his love, thus a good peace of literature even to the general reader.

Reference List

Aldridge, A. (1975). Voltaire and the Century of Light. New Jersey: Princeton University Press.

Ayer, A.J. (1986). Voltaire. New York: Random House

Mason, H (1992). Candide: Optimism Demolished. New York: Twayne Publishers.

Voltaire’s novella Candide can be regarded as a biting satire of the political and cultural life in eighteenth-century Europe. In this work, the author attempts to explore a great number of problems such as incessant wars, philosophical beliefs of this period, colonialism, and many other problems which affected thousands of people.

To a great extent, this work is aimed at showing that in various European societies, people could be treated only as objects that did not have the capacity to think and feel. In many cases, they were denied the right to humanity. In his turn, Voltaire attempts to demonstrate the destructive nature of this ideology.

It should be mentioned that for a long time, Candide remains virtually impervious to the outside world. In fact, he lives in the castle of his uncle, Baron of Thunder-ten-tronckh (Voltaire 5). To some degree, the protagonist is convinced that he lives in an ideal society in which suffering and injustice do not exist.

However, when Candide leaves the castle, he is forced to join the war about which he does not know anything. Moreover, he is flogged for refusing to take part in the battle of the two armies (Voltaire 17). One should bear in mind that in the eighteenth century, thousands of soldiers were coerced into military service. Their opinions, needs, or views were rejected as something irrelevant. It seems that these problems remained relevant long after the death of Voltaire.

Additionally, in this novella, Voltaire highlights the immorality of slavery. The author mentions that the characters are enslaved several times. Moreover, in many cases, they are treated as mere objects that are not allowed to have their own values, ideas, or opinions. This is one of the details that can attract the attention of a reader.

One should focus on the narrative told by an old woman who has been enslaved for almost the entire life (Voltaire 27). In particular, she says that she has never been viewed as a living and thinking being by other people. This example is important for describing the moral problems which were not fully resolved in the eighteenth century.

Finally, it should be noted that the author does not attempt to provide solutions to the problems that he describes. The protagonist of the novella decides to end his travel and work as a peasant. He comes to the conclusion that devotion to work is probably the only worthy way of living (Voltaire 84). Moreover, he rejects philosophy as something unnecessary. This is one of the details that should be considered by readers.

On the whole, one can say that Voltaire’s Candide is an influential work of literature and philosophy. Admittedly, the author does not show how one could transform the European societies of that period. However, this novella can enable the readers to see how various countries evolved during the eighteenth century. Moreover, the work highlights the value of individuality and human dignity. These are the main issues that can be singled out.

Works Cited

Voltaire, Francois, Candide, New York: Sparklesoup LLC, 2004. Print.