Candide
In his signature work Candide, French author Voltaire offers an extensive criticism of seventeenth and eighteenth-century social, cultural, and political realities. Aiming the brunt of his satirical attack on the elite strata of society, Voltaire simultaneously criticizes some liberal Enlightenment philosophies. Voltaire mocks the authority of both Church and State, showing the corruption inherent in each. Similarly, the novel points out the insipid arrogance of the aristocracy, especially via his relationship with the Baron and his family, all of whom except for his beloved Cunegonde remain farcically nameless throughout the novel. Although Voltaire sympathizes with the core values of Enlightenment thought such as social justice, reason, and egalitarianism, his novel demonstrates disappointment with the distortion of those values. Excess optimism, represented clearly by Pangloss, and excess pessimism, represented by Martin, are portrayed as the two impractical extremes of Enlightenment values in Candide. Furthermore, while Voltaire appreciates the burgeoning rationalism and scientific thought of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, he also points out how excess reason can exaggerate the importance of human beings' place in the universe, neglecting an appreciation for the powerful forces of nature. Voltaire also satirizes human friendship and romance via the relationships that the title character develops with people like Cunegonde, Jacques, Cacambo, and the old woman. Candide is an enduring work of literature because of its broad and unsparing social critique and for its author's frank illustration of irony.
Cunegonde in many ways propels the plot of the novel because Candide pursues her almost as his life's purpose. Following Cunegonde from nation to nation, Candide endures exile, danger, and isolation and yet never really finds fulfillment in his love. Through Candide's relationship with Cunegonde, Voltaire launches his clearest attack on elitism and on social norms. The novel opens with the youthful flirtation between Candide and Cunegonde, which leads directly to Candide's exile and his relentless lifelong journey in pursuit of Cunegonde and of his own freedom. Candide's exile, his illegitimate birth, and the refusal of any one in the Baron's family to recognize Candide as a social equal comprise a solid critique of the aristocracy. Cunegonde's betrayal of Candide in Buenos Aires suggests that she, too, plays into the social norms and elitist mentality of her family. The Baron's family all become stripped entirely of their wealth and political power by the end of the novel and yet none will recognize Candide as a social equal. Even when humbled and beaten, the Baron's family retains their sense of superiority. In spite of Candide's having helped Cunegonde and in spite of his obvious intelligence, the Baron and the Baron's son perpetually look down their noses at Candide, proclaiming that he is of too lowly a birth for Cunegonde. Voltaire mocks Cunegonde's brother in Chapter Fifteen, when he states, "you have the impudence to marry my sister, who bears seventy-two quarterings!" The insistent references to pedigree mimic the lineage of horses or dogs, not humans. In casting the nobility in a degrading light through their compromised position in Turkey and their ridiculous ascription to nobility by birthright, Voltaire mocks the aristocracy with aplomb. The fact that none of Cunegonde's relatives are referred to by first name, but only in relation to Thunder-ten-tronckh emphasizes Voltaire's mockery of nobility in Candide.
Voltaire also frankly mocks Church authority and Church doctrine. A brunt of Enlightenment philosophy already, the Church is under attack by figures in the novel like Pangloss. However, especially through Pangloss, Voltaire shows how the Enlightenment failed to offer a sound alternative to the Church. While Voltaire paints the Church as being much more one-dimensional and monolithic than the Enlightenment, the author nevertheless points out weaknesses in both philosophies. In Candide, the Church is initially represented by the heavy-handed forces of the Grand Inquisitor in Lisbon. The Grand Inquisitor's participation in Cunegonde's enslavement shows the outright hypocrisy of Catholicism, underscored by the elaborate...
Aside from Candide and Pangloss, the character who suffers the most in this novel and demonstrates that the world is far from the best of all possible places is Cudgeon's servant, the old woman. With the characterization of the old woman, Voltaire makes it quite clear that he is satirizing human suffering and the value of philosophy that seeks to endorse or even defend one's existence in such a cruel
On the one hand his gesture can be interpreted as the desire to reconstruct the original garden of paradise. This hypothesis could be supported by the name of the character and the reader could understand that he maintains his innocence despite having seen and experienced the evil which characterizes the real world. The fact that he dedicates himself to gardening also suggest that his awareness regarding the fact that if
Candide LIFE IS WORTH LIVING Voltaire earned much fame and criticism at the same time for his powerful crusade against injustice and bigotry, expressed in brilliant literature. He went up against the government and the Catholic hierarchy, particularly because of the Grand Inquisition. His character, Candide, was very much patterned after his own personality and experience, but his character begins by believing in goodness as prevailing in the world and ends the
The group does not end up at a house or on the road or at a castle but in a garden, at work where new seeds can grow, yield produce and perhaps enhance the quality of life. As members of a small group of individuals away from the world's corruption, they can each have a personal task as well as set and reach goals together. This, after all, is what
" (Voltaire, Chapter 30) as much as the reader might have suspected Pangloss' increasing embitterment, irrational emotional ties to creed, in the world of the novel, still hold true, although rather than believe him or attempt to show disrespect towards the former tutor who has proved so useless to him, Candide stresses that the mans remarks are "excellently observed...but let us cultivate our garden." (Voltaire, Chapter 30) Let us, in other
He has refused to see the world clearly for so long, that once he has no choice other than to apprehend reality with its full force, it hurts him to see Cunegund grown ugly and shrill, and himself in mean and reduced circumstances. He resolves to find some inner strength and bear down upon his ill temperament, to make his garden grow and to take pleasure in the simple tasks
Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.
Get Started Now