Candide by François-Marie Arouet

Toward the beginning of the 18th century, a new ideology began to take hold of Europe. It was during this time that a radical and critical revolution took place to bring about the use of rational thought and enlighten the people about their own beliefs and values; thus igniting the period of Enlightenment. In this period many people followed the teachings of their forefathers, such as Socrates, who was considered a figure of skepticism and rational thought. Challenging all views and theorems was the main point of this new ideology. Voltaire, a very powerful and influential figure among the writers of the 18th century, was known for his rejection of religion and a devout deist. In one of his most famous works, Candide, he

Throughout the novel, Candide comes across many religious leaders during his journey that Voltaire portrays with irony and hypocrisy. After escaping to Holland in the beginning of the novel, Candide encounters an orator who has been addressing on the subject of charity for a whole hour. The orator, when asked for food, tells Candide that he “don’t [doesn’t] deserve to eat” because Candide does not believe that the Pope is Antichrist. (27) Although people around him are actually suffering from continuous war and devastating poverty, the orator only seems to care about giving a speech on charity and converting others to his religious beliefs. Not to mention that his own religious belief or speech, ironically, also encourages reaching out to those in need. Stubborn and egoistic orator is engulfed with his certainness in his belief, and fails to recognize it himself that he, in fact, is going against his own belief. Another example of hypocrisy of religion is shown by the Grand Inquisitor who makes a deal with Don Issachar to share Cunegonde as a mistress.

The Enlightenment period writers focused on reason, knowledge, and rationality as major themes. In this era the Catholic Church was still an extremely powerful institution operating throughout much of Europe; however reason was beginning to emerge as an alternative to faith and religion. As a result, Enlightenment writers began to look at the world critically and rationally. Much of the important literature of the period was satirical in nature, using humor, irony, and exaggeration to expose and criticize people's stupidity or vices, particularly in the context of contemporary politics and other significant issues. Two great Enlightenment writers, Moliere and Voltaire, use satirical approaches in their works that have various similarities and differences.

Candide was one of Voltaire’s major works, and is considered the most important by many historians and literary analysts. Throughout Candide, there are many scathing attacks, mostly through satire, irony, and absurd characters (Voltaire). Candide explores the hypocrisy that was rampant in the Church. Voltaire writes about the inhumanity of the clergy, most notably the Inquisitor, in hanging his fellow citizens over mere philosophical differences. The Inquisitor in Candide orders the flogging of Candide for merely “listening with an air of approval” (“Voltaire | Author and Philosopher”). Church officials are depicted as being the most sinful characters of all. Voltaire directly attacks the Church using examples of the hypocrites that could often be found within the Church at that time. Attacks against the

In his work, Candide, Voltaire uses satire as a means of conveying his opinions about many aspects of European society in the eighteenth century.  Voltaire successfully criticizes religion, the military, and the philosophy of optimism.

This essay will examine the development of the character of Candide over the course of the text as well as commenting on the final conclusion that the protagonist comes to regarding the possibility or otherwise of achieving happiness.

Cunegonde was a beautiful young woman, she was the daughter of the Baron, and is constantly being pursued by Candide throughout the whole story-which really is about him finding his way back to her the whole time. Cunegonde grew up in the Castle of Baron Thunder-Ten-Tronckh which was located in Westphalia. She grew up rich, getting all the nicer things in life, and didn’t have to worry about anything until one day, Candide got banished from the castle and that’s where it all started going downhill. Cunegonde was separated from Candide, her home got attacked, and her family was murdered. From there, Cunegonde is passed around through a couple of men: The Bulgarian, Captain Don Issachar, The Grand Inquisitor, Don Fernando, and others. Candide ends up feeling like she isn’t as beautiful after he gets her back in the end, and really just is not attracted to her like he used to be. In fact, in the end, there is a description of how ugly she really is while she is running to Candide after their time apart. There is also a line that says “in fact, Candide had no real wish to marry Cunegonde” (Voltaire 411) when in the beginning he talks about his love for her non-stop. But now that she’s been raped, abused, and used for whatever, he thinks she’s ugly and really doesn’t want to marry her but thinks that it is a good decision. At the same time, Cunegonde understands that she isn’t very powerful and doesn’t have a lot of options. So, if she wishes to survive, she must use her beauty to her advantage. Women in the 18th century didn’t have a lot of options if they wanted a “good” life after marriage. They married someone who could take care of them since they legally couldn’t have jobs. This quote “A women’s gender and marital status were the primary determinants

Voltaire was the author of the novella Candide, also known as "Optimism". The the novella, Voltaire portrays the idea of Optimism as being illogical and absurd. In Candide, Voltaire satirizes the doctrine of Optimism, an idea that was greatly used during the Enlightenment time period by philosophers. In this narrative, Candide is a young man who goes through a series of undertakings and ventures around the the globe where he experiences evil and adversity. Throughout his journeys, Candide maintained the ideas of the teachings of his tutor, Pangloss. Candide and Pangloss believed in the idea that “All is for the best in the best of all possible worlds...” (Voltaire 4). This belief is what Voltaire pointed out to be an irrational way of

Enlightenment philosophers wanted concrete, tangible proof to back their ideas. Pangloss, Candide’s friend and teacher, is a character that depicts the metaphysical side of the Old Regime. He is an optimist who believes that there is no effect without a cause and that everything is made for a reason and with a purpose. Voltaire portrays Pangloss as naive. Pangloss finds himself in trouble for studying and exploring the world before he becomes sure of himself and his ideas. Even after Pangloss’s troubles, he still refuses to stray from his thoughts and would rather believe his ideas than face reality. Another character that is depicted as naive and optimistic is Cacambo, Candide’s servant. Cacambo consoles Candide after his loss of Cunegonde. Cacambo claims that God takes care of all women and that they will never be at a loss. But Candide knows the sufferings that Cunegonde and the Old Woman have experienced. Cunegonde was bought, sold, and objectified throughout the novel, along with the Old Woman, who was beaten, raped, and treated with

  In its time, satire was a powerful tool for political assault on Europe's corrupt and deteriorating society. Voltaire's Candide uses satire to vibrantly and sarcastically portray optimism, a philosophical view from the Enlightenment used to bury the horrors of 18th century life: superstition, sexually transmitted diseases, aristocracy, the church, tyrannical rulers, civil and religious wars, and the cruel punishment of the innocent.

Voltaire’s satire contains a strong sense of witful irony and parodies meant to elicit disgust at the topics he is criticizing. “Candide’s” sense of satire is largely derived from the Juvenalian satire which was created by the Roman satirist Juvenal. By using absurdist and ironic images of characters, satirists intend to invoke disgust or laughter at a topic to the point where it is rejected a legitimate. Thi is the point with Voltaire’s mockery of optimism in “Candide”.

Many critics argue that Candide is not an enlightened work, but Voltaire’s satire thoroughly reflects on the philosophical morals and lessons of the Enlightenment. Voltaire’s satire comments on the political, social, and religious views of the time, emphasizing the beliefs of a majority of enlightenment thinkers and philosophers. Voltaire demonstrates three different enlightenment thoughts or views in his work: anti-feudalism, optimism, and the hypocrisy of the Christian church.

But still, he is optimistic about the world. Without Cunegonde, I believe, that Candide would not so readily accept Optimism. His love for her is so strong that it renders Candide naïve to the world’s horrors.

Voltaire’s Candide is a satirical fiction that was meant as both an insult and a criticism to the wealthy nobility and the Catholic Church. Voltaire, major voice during the Enlightenment period, had a wide spread influence from England and France to Russia. Candide was massively circulated throughout Europe. Voltaire used Candide to offer his opinion of what was wrong with society: being that the wealthy were ungrateful, selfish people and the church was a ruthless, maniacal super power.

When François-Marie Arouet, better known by his pen-name Voltaire, secretly published Candide, ou l 'Optimisme simultaneously in five European countries in January of 1759, it was met with widespread denouncement due to its controversial content and scandalous portrayal of politics and religion. Nevertheless, the bitingly satirical novel fervently spread throughout Europe and was translated into several more languages, selling tens of thousands of copies within its first year of publication (Barnes). Despite being first categorized as dangerous blasphemy, Candide is now regarded as one of the most influential books of all time. Almost 300 years later, Candide is considered an unparalleled criticism of politics and religion during the Age of Enlightenment.