Optimism In Candide

            Candide is consistently being brainwashed by reason (Pangloss) saying that we live in "the best of all possible worlds", while it is quite obviously that he does not. For how can there be, in the best of all worlds, war, slavery and many more abominations. Half-way through the book it would appear that Candide has given up his optimism when he looked at the Negro slave. "Oh Pangloss... I'll have to give up your optimism at last" (73). But to the distress of the readers he has not given up his chafing optimism. "Since I found you [an Eldoradian sheep laden with stones], I'm sure I can find Cunegnde again" (79). Thus we see that he has quickly recovered his optimism. Voltaire is using Candide's blatant optimism to relate to the people of his time that also have the same type of optimism.

Pangloss?s philosophy explains in a superficial way why so many bad things happen to Candide and other characters in the story. Because "everything is for the best of all possible worlds," the bad and evil eventually lead to something good and are necessary for the good to happen(p.519). Pangloss points this out to Candide at the end when he explains:

. The naivety of his desire for happiness is often associated with innocence and a lack of knowledge about world and the society we live in. If one wishes to become knowledgeable and experienced , innocence and ignorance must be sacrificed. Upon being given the choice between execution and flogging, Candide learns that there is not always a clear choice between good and bad, in this case one must choose between bad and worse. Once the young protagonist is cast out into the real world his eyes are opened to the reality and evilness of the world around him. However because of his dependence on others to think for him Candide’s mind still remains closed to self experience and discovery of meaning or lack there

The theme of criticism “the best of all possible worlds” is present through the whole story. Throughout the novel, Voltaire uses optimism satire to contrast with the catastrophes and human affliction in the story. When Candide finds a moribund and sick Pangloss, Candide asks who is at fault for his tragedy and Pangloss replies that “ The disease was a necessity in this ‘the best of all possible worlds’, for it was brought to Europe by Columbus’ men, who also brought chocolate and cochineal, two greater goods that well offset any negative effects of the disease,” (Voltaire 17). With all the

From a young age, Candide had been taught by Pangloss to have an optimistic philosophy, and he kept those ideas with him throughout his life. Even when the people around him feared the worst and complained about their misfortunes, Candide kept going back to the idea that “everything is linked in a chain of necessity, and arranged for the best” (9). And by no means was he left untouched by various trials: he was flogged, penniless, driven from his home, shipwrecked, robbed, and doomed to leave his loved ones. Although these misfortunes make him question the necessity of tribulation, he nonetheless hoped for the best. Part of his optimism might stem from the fact that he was young and healthy, but it’s also because he cared about the welfare of those apart from himself. For instance, when he heard that Cunegondé was dead and Pangloss hanged, he cried, “If this is the best of all possible worlds, what must the others be like? …Mademoiselle Cunegonde…was it necessary for you to be disembowelled?” (16) Clearly, the reason he questioned the “rightness” of the world is because it took away the people he loved. His mourning for those who have died shows his tender innocence, but it also shows his selflessness. In fact, the reason he was so optimistic throughout the story was because of his longing for Cunegondé, his beloved, and his only wish was to be with her and keep her safe. In other words, he lived for something outside of himself, and that caused him to have hope.

he still believes that there is no effect without a cause but since he is for the first time exposed to the disasters of the real world, he sort of begins to doubt Pangloss's optimism. While Candide is traveling with his sidekick Cacambo, he discovers that he is not high class enough to get married to Cunegonde by the baron, but apparently it's reasonable for monkeys to have sexual relations with young woman. This throws Candide off because the two are so contradicting. Candide doesn't understand how people can see things so differently . All he's known is Pangloassian theory and now he is encountering opposing theories of life. Cacambo sums up what the new world has to offer by saying that “this hemisphere is no better than the other one.” Candide is beginning to understand that he is not going to find everything that he is looking for, and that he is not going to find the best of all possible worlds because it doesn't exist.

Voltaire's Candide is a novel that is interspersed with superficial characters and conceptual ideas that are critically exaggerated and satirized. The parody offers cynical themes disguised by mockeries and witticism, and the story itself presents a distinctive outlook on life narrowed to the concept of free will as opposed to blind faith driven by desire for an optimistic outcome. The crucial contrast in the story deals with irrational ideas as taught to Candide about being optimistic by Pangloss, his cheerful mentor, versus reality as viewed by the rest of the world through the eyes of the troubled character, Martin. This raises the question of whether or not the notion of free will is valid due to Candide’s peculiar timing of his

Pangloss, a philosopher is depicted all through the novel as an idealistic mastermind who lives by this logic. Candide, who is mentored by Pangloss aimlessly much of the time addresses this reasoning at snapshots of hardship over the span of his life, lastly rejects it, picking to trust that in spite of the fact that the world is not the best of all possible worlds but,“we must cultivate our garden” (Voltaire 365). Different characters in the book likewise can 't help contradicting Pangloss ' ideals. Jacques who went to Lisbon with Pangloss isn 't strong of these ideals. Jacques says “ humankind has corrupted its nature a little, for people were not born wolves, yet they have become wolves. God did not give them heavy cannon or bayonets, yet they have invented them to destroy each other” (Voltaire 309). The book recounts the account of Candide, as he goes through life and endures numerous hardships on account of others. Candide not only suffers, but the people he surrounds himself with suffer the same fate as well. The book does a good job at outlining human suffering that provoked enlightenment ideas to not only challenge it, but to really show their true selves. Each time something bad happens Pangloss shares his idealistic perspective as to why it occurred. The way Candide points these things out, causes the reader to disagree with Pangloss’s

In a way, Pangloss is Candide’s “father-figure”. As no physical father is present in Candide’s life, Pangloss’s teachings install order and opinion in his world. Whenever introduced to something new- terrible or grand- throughout this novel Candide’s first thought is always about Pangloss; what he would say about it or how he would react. Pangloss physically bounces in and out of this novel, infrequently, but in reference he is in the entire book. Page four in chapter one, while setting up the background for Candide, Voltaire includes an educational and philosophical speech by Pangloss in which he ends by stating, “...all is for the best.” This direct quote continues to influence Candide throughout his quest. This quote initiates an optimistic attitude in Candide which will encourage him throughout his adventures.

In “Candide,” Voltaire’s satiric theme is broad and varied. Although the most interesting satire is the one on religion, especially the utopia in which Candide starts off the story in, the first in importance is philosophical optimism, specifically Pangloss’s philosophy which in the novel this philosophical optimism seems to represent mankind's overall and overused optimism as means to copping with tragedy or loss. Pangloss’s philosophy is both the most important point for debate among the novel’s characters and one of the main targets of Voltaire’s satire. Pangloss is inevitably humorous “Pangloss gave instruction in metaphysico-theologico-cosmolo-nigology" his character is very predictable and superficial, his so called doctrine on optimism which is voiced out repeatedly that even great evil leads to good is opposed gross absurdity with absurdity. "It is clear, said he, that things cannot be

Pangloss’s death is a detriment to Candide’s faith in both the philosophy and even Candide himself. While witnessing Pangloss’s death, Candide proclaims “If this was the best of possible worlds, what then are the others?” This statement shows the seed of doubt as been sowed into Candide’s mind. While this seems to be a setback in his quest, it actually advances him closer to the actual goal: self-knowledge and comprehension about suffering. This statement also shows the satirical nature of this novel.

In Voltaire’s Candide, we are taken by the hand through an adventure which spanned two continents, several countries, and to a multitude of adverse characters. The protagonist, Candide, became the recipient of the horrors which would be faced by any person in the 18th century. But Candide was always accompanied with fellows sufferers, two of which our focus will lay, Pangloss and Martin. In equal respects, both are embodiments of different philosophies of the time: Pangloss the proponent of Optimism and Martin the proponent of Pessimism. Each of the two travelers is never together with Candide, until the end, but both entice him to picture the world in one of their two philosophies. Throughout the story there is an apparent ebb and flow

While this may not be exactly what he meant, the way that all of the events seem to be connected and turn into something good one way or another, closely relate to the idea of fate. While in the end both Candide and Pangloss agree that they do live in the best possible world, there are times when they both struggled with whether or not that was actually the case. This was especially true for Candide who was constantly doubting Pangloss due to some event and then seeing the truth in Pangloss’ words when a different event would occur.

Candide is a very simple minded man and is easy to persuade, hence his name. When Candide got kicked out of the castle he met two unarmed men. They offered to feed him and give him money, Candide was shocked and delighted at the gesture. He thought to himself that Pangloss teachings must be true. He made a mistake by trusting the men and in the process was nearly beaten to death.

As one can tell that optimism is the belief that all things happen for the best. In chapter one Candide learns from Pangloss that all things happen for a reason, “there cannot possibly be an effect without a cause” (Voltaire). Now one could come to the conclusion that the first chapter of this story was based on the story of Adam and Eve’s fall from grace (Bible). In Candide, Candide falls from grace by getting caught kissing Cunégonde and ends up being thrown from his Eden only to suffer