Reflective Reader's Essay on Voltaire’s Candide

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Voltaire’s Candide

My research paper today will cover Voltaire Candide. Some may not know who Voltaire may be or anything about any of his stories. So today I will be informing you about Voltaire and some of the purposes behind writing his stories for his wonderful books. Followed by why I chose Candide and what I learned from reading the story as well, hopefully, it is something everyone would be interested in reading and learning a life lesson as well. So, after reading this Research paper I hope it informs everyone on Voltaire’s background and hopefully gives everyone a reason to read one of his stories and may learn something to help them in the future.

Voltaire was a philosopher of the 18th century. Like most parents who expected another career life for their child Voltaire’s father wanted him to become a lawyer in France where he is from. Not knowing the mark, he will leave in the future with his writing. but Voltaire continued pursuing his writing career. Which eventually lead him in jail several times.

Like most historic people to leave their mark, they had milestones come in their way, but it was up to them to continue or let it stop them. Mark Oliver’s article states that ‘in the name of bureaucracy, procedure, or just selfishness, some people get dragged through hell for trying to help or just expressing themselves’ (Mark Oliver). But like most people that is exactly what he did continued writing. The reason his stories landed him in jail several times was that he used his satirical writing to critique the government. In his eyes, it was his way of showing how he sees things. The writing was his way out and with people who may love to read it was a way of catching their attention it was his stepping stone to start, if some may ask.

But everyone feels a type of way about something in life. No matter if it is as small as washing dishes. But behind that problem everyone also has something they love doing to help express themselves behind it. To get their opinion looked at just to let it out. That is simply all he was doing in my eyes not knowing what would happen. And even after the consequences, he did not let that ever stop him.

But that was not all he wrote about. He was a talented writer, so his style was mixed. See most writers have a specific thing they only write about. But not Voltaire he wrote anything that can catch an audience’s eye and maintain their attention. He wrote not only philosophical works he wrote plays, poetry, and historical work as well.

Those things are what had me feeling like his stories might not be that bad. Cause if a writer is multi-talented their stories may not be so boring to me. I can not read a book by just anyone especially if it had no excitement or purpose that will relate to me. That is when I lose focus and stop reading most of the time.

So once the reading assignment Candide was giving as I started reading, it was different. It did not start off boring it started with a purpose. Candide was an illegitimate nephew of a German baron. He grows up in the barons under a scholar name Pangloss.

Candide was in love with the baron’s young daughter. The baron catches the two making love one day and expels Candide from his home. For those who may not know mainly all of Voltaire’s stories will involve love. That was smart of him in my opinion because love is not a sited thing or experience, everyone interacts with love in their life. So of course, people would love reading about it.

What made that part so interesting was that I could relate because I have gotten caught kissing someone I loved before and her parents made sure when I was young, we stayed away from each other. But Candide’s love in the story was way stronger than the love I had he was determined to get back to her by any means.

Because after he was expelled from the baron’s home he was conscripted into the army. But being smart he waited for war and doing the war he escaped. Now, in reality, we all know that would be like beating the impossible because the hardest thing is to escape the army. I love my country, but I do not plan on going if I did, I will try to pull a Candide and escape knowing I would not get far.

So, as I am reading the story, I am very interested in it because I see a man beating the odds to do what he has to do no matter the consequences. He is doing all actions out of love with no second thought.

Along his journey for finding his love and starting their life, he traveled to Holland. Where he meets an Anabaptist by the name of Jacques. He charitably takes Candide under his care. Because he sees that he is a lost traveler. That is when Candide found his tutor Pangloss. But Pangloss was not the same he almost did not recognize him because at the time he was a beggar on the side of the street and Candide gave him some coins.

Candide receives terrible news from him that was Cunegonde was raped and killed. Candide was in such diss belief. His new tutor Jacques was later thrown overboard trying to help a sailor and in Auto-de-Fe Candide was flogged and his old tutor Pangloss was hung. Now as I was reading the thought came to me and all I could say was he is always finding himself in trouble. But never suffer the fatal consequences. Some may call that luck, but I call those blessings.

A man by name of Reinhold Niebuhr stated, “All human sin seems so much worse in its consequences than in its intention” (Reinhold Niebuhr). That meant a lot to me knowing that and related to Candide even more because the consequences of his action should have not been that deep concerning his situation.

But after Candide was flogged old lady nurses his wounds and finally escorted him to see the love he traveled so far for. So that became the plot in my mind because that’s when I realized after steady reading, she survived Pangloss’s information was false. So as Candide was talking to her catching up, she noted that she was forced to watch him suffer and Pangloss hanging. Candide is very vulnerable at the time because he lost two tutors and hearing the situation of his love being raped and enslaved has him at a breaking point.

An article I read stated that when losing a loved one the body sometimes responds is to perceive danger is the secretion of corticosteroids, or stress hormones (Susan Blankenship and Rebecca porter). So once Don Issachar the Jewish merchant seen Candide and Ms. Cunegonde on the sofa, he drew his dagger that is when Candide put a sword through him and the Grand inquisitor. So, to me, all I could think of was he was reacting off self-defense but with no hesitation because he already felt as if he lost it all because of what he has been through.

They escaped and made it far even after her diamonds and jewels were stolen. That showed real love for each other was deeper than you can think. That is a point that Voltaire tries to make in all his story is strong love. It did eventually hit a point in Candide where she left him to be with the governor Don Fernando for his wealth.

Candide was forced to leave but even after that, he promises to come back to her. I would have personally left her alone after that. That is when I wondered was, he only doing this out of the history together or if that is just how much he loved her. A man by the name of Michael Yarbrough says, ‘people use mirroring as a kind of universal signal. To survive and evolve humankind had to learn and invent many things including socially accepted behavior’ (Michael Yarbrough). So that could be why his love for her becomes stronger and stronger because she is all he has left.

But with the help of his friends and her brother he eventually got her back. In doing so after gaining knowledge from a farmer couple he realizes. No need of trying to do what everyone else is doing in life to become happy or how they tend to their garden that makes it so beautiful.

That is when he quoted something that stuck with me and can help everyone in life and that was, “only way rendering life bearable we must cultivate our garden.” Meaning in life don’t go off other aspects do what you can in life and everything else will fall into place. That concludes my paper on Voltaire’s Candide informing everyone about him and his story Candide as well as how it affected me. Hope everyone enjoyed and learn and soon pick up a book by him as well and read a wonderful story.

Citation page

· Niebuhr, Reinhold. “Everything we do has consequences.” April 22, 2012. www.psychology today.com
· Blankenship, Susan, and Porter, Rebecca. “ Physical reaction to loss and grief.’ March 21, 2010. Https://www.taps.org/articles/16-1/physicalreactionstoloss.com
· Yarbrough, Michael. ‘The surprising truth about why we tend to imitate others.’ August 30, 2017. http://medium.com/the-mission/tthe-surprising-truth-about-why-we-tend-to-imitate-others-b15831070cd9.com
· Oliver, Marker. ‘Good people who were punished for helping others.’ August 27, 2017. http://listverse.com/2017/08/27/10-good-people-who-were-punished-for-helping-others/

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Reflective Reader’s Essay on Voltaire’s Candide

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