Hypocrisy In Voltaire's Candide

Voltaire is considered as one of the greatest Enlightenment writers in France for his extensive use of literary elements to convey his message. Voltaire satirizes different aspects of society to expose their absurdity in most of his writings. In Candide, Voltaire, by employing situational irony, mocks the blindness of society, magnifying the narrow-minded human nature.

    Candide on the surface is a witty story. However when inspected deeper it is a philippic writing against people of an uneducated status. Candide is an archetype of these idiocracies, for he lacks reason and has optimism that is truly irking, believing that this is the best of all possible worlds. Thus Voltaire uses a witty, bantering tale on the surface, but in depth a cruel bombast against the ignoramuses of his times.

Religious leaders are the targets of satire throughout Candide. Voltaire portrays the religious clergy as men who use their positions to further their own causes. In addition, the priests keep the less fortunate oppressed, so the clergy members can continue to enjoy extravagant luxuries. Candide discovers the young Baron, whom he thought to be dead, living among the Jesuit Priests of Paraguay. Assuming the native

Voltaire attacks the corruption within the church and its officials as well.  The Grand Inquisitor, a significant clergyman, makes Cunegonde his mistress at a Mass service.  Even more ironic is that he shares her with a Jew.  It was a Franciscan priest that robbed Lady Cunegonde of her money and jewels.  The old woman identifies herself as the bastard daughter of a pope, and the papacy is also identified as keeping soldiers for private use.  When Candide is ill in France, a clergyman is one of the many that harasses him in attempt on his wealth.  Ironically, the disease that Pangloss catches from Paquette, originated from a Franciscan priest.  Voltaire portrays the church as violent and corrupt and the clergy as parsimonious fortune hunters.

In Voltaires?s Candide, the main character, Candide, fails to live happily because he is looking outside of himself and his circumstances to do it. Voltaire says through Candide's ultimate discovery that happiness in many ways depends on a person's attitude. Voltaire's philosophy expressed through Candide's final realization is that "We must cultivate our garden," which is the key to happiness(p.585). By cultivating our garden, Voltaire means that we must make the best of our situation in the present moment. We accept what we are given in life and work to make the best of it. It all has to do with our perspective on life. We do not find happiness somewhere else or by philosophizing about it, we open our eyes to the

Many people concern themselves with the goal of living the most satisfying life possible. While some seek a peaceful existence, others hope for prosperity and high social standing. Throughout Voltaire’s “Candide,” the main character’s search for a content lifestyle is what drives most of his adventures. During Candide’s travels, he attempted to honor the teachings of his tutor, Dr. Pangloss, who believed “things cannot be otherwise than they are, for since everything is made to serve an end, everything necessarily serves the best end” (Voltaire, 101). Although these lectures seemed logical, Candide learned that the only way to live a satisfactory life in “the best of all possible worlds” was to enjoy isolation, work hard, and have a purpose in society. He concluded this at the end of the story when he explained to Martin, his travel companion, and Pangloss that “we must cultivate our garden”

Voltaire’s Candide portrays an exaggerated image of human cruelty and suffering in the world. Specifically, Voltaire criticizes people’s lack of willingness to prevent suffering, and their tendency to accept the idea that there is nothing anyone can do about human outcomes. He upholds his belief that practical ways of solving problems generate improvement. He believes that human indifference and inaction cause suffering to carry on. Voltaire’s believes that naïve optimism, absolute pessimism, cruel indifference, and lack of reason hinder positive and constructive change.

The final aspect of society during the age of enlightenment that Voltaire attacks is morals of the people. Many examples can be found within the story to suggest the morals of society were far from

In the novel, Voltaire shows that Candide also expresses tyranny touching upon the values of power of reason and progress and potential. A specific scene on progress and potential states “He then informed the Baron that he was going to marry his sister. ‘I shall never allow her to disgrace herself so meanly,’ said the

The “Age of Reason”, during Europe was a time in history where people started to confide in eachother and themselves when it came to reason and logic; and it was a period when creative ability came to light and it was encouraged. This paper will examine Voltaire 's Candide and the way Voltaire mocks religion and how this outlines Enlightenment thought.

Francois-Marie Arouet, better known by his pen name “Voltaire”, once said “Nothing is more dangerous than ignorance and intolerance armed with power”. This quote criticizes the government and the Catholic Church - two institutions known for their lack of tolerance, respect, and value of the common person’s life. Voltaire was a French author, historian, and philosopher who was active during the age of enlightenment in the 18th century. It was a time characterized by the discussion of four new values: Humanitarianism, ending suffering; Progress, furthering society; Rationality, using logic and reason to improve the world; and Freedom of Thought, challenging traditional authority, blind obedience, and superstition. Voltaire is known for

Greed is the main cause of evil in the world because it brings the worst in each and every individual. These individuals are capable of anything to accomplish their goals, and self-suffice their needs such as wealth, social-class, etc. An example of greed in Candide is when the old woman tells Lady Cunegonde “I confess that, if I were in your place, I should have no hesitation in marrying the Governor and making the captain’s fortune” (Voltaire, p. 58). In this case the old woman gives advice to Lady Cunegonde that she should marry a stranger just to get away from poverty. Lady Cunegonde is a beautiful, young lady, and because of this she is desired by many men, one of whom is the Governor of Buenos Ayres, as a result she can gain benefits from her beauty. It is unbelievable that she is capable of getting married to a man just because of his social position and wealth.

On November 21, 1694, Francois-Marie Arouet, otherwise known as Voltaire, was born in Paris. The youngest of five, son to Francois and Marie Arouet, Voltaire grew

     Another example of how Voltaire ridicules Pangloss' optimistic philosophy is the mention of the Lisbon earthquake and fire. Even though the disastrous earthquake took over 30,000 lives, Pangloss still upheld his philosophical optimism by stating, "For all that is for the best...It is impossible that things should not be other than they are; for everything is right. (26)" The disaster in Lisbon affected Voltaire's life so much that he wrote the Poem

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.