Optimism In Candide, By Voltaire

    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.

In his analysis of Voltaire’s “Candide or Optimism” entitled “Candide’s Garden” Bottiglia contends that it was the disasters of the 1750’s that befell both Europe and Voltaire, that influenced the creation of “Candide or Optimism.” including, the death of his mistress in childbirth, the Seven Years War & The Lisbon disaster and his personal rupture with his friend Frederick the Great. He starts by focusing on the parallels between Candide’s ejection from the Westphalian Baron’s castle with the ejection of Voltaire from the court of Frederick the Great in Prussia. He then states that “this broad similarity between the evolution of Voltaire’s cultural attitude during the fifties and the intellectual movement of “Candide or Optimism” lens no

In the book Candide, Voltaire leads us through his character Candide on a series of unfortunate adventures, on which Candide stays optimistic on all the events and believes what his tutor has taught him that, "all is for the best in this world" (pg 27). Voltaire, through his characters, tries to reflect his political concerns during his time. In the book, Candide is mostly guided by two men, Pangloss and Martin. Pangloss's philosophical ideas are more optimistic, whereas Martin's ideologies are more pessimistic. Voltaire tries to knock down the "all is for the best in this world" notion by creating harsh and discerning situations around Candide's life. The "best in this world" ideology is the that everything happens for a reason. There

Voltaire's Candide is the story of how one man's adventures affect his philosophy on life. Candide begins his journey full of optimism that he lives in "the best of all possible worlds," but he learns that it is naïve to say that good will eventually come of any evil.

The Story of Candide is a short but diverse story that tells of a young man’s journey for love and understanding and the hardships he faces, all the while keeping a very strong, positive and philosophical outlook on life. The novel takes place both in fictional and existing locations throughout Latin America and Europe during the 1750’s. Voltaire believed that the society he lived in had many flaws, which are often illustrated and satirized in Candide. Candide’s journey portrays the flawed human assumption that the grass is always greener on the other side as well as giving the reader an apt example of an individual’s journey from innocence through a series of trials and tribulations to becoming a mature, experienced and enlightened individual.

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

On the contrary, Voltaire finds this belief to be ridiculous. He is quick to enforce his opposition by the first chapter of Candide with his very humorous introduction of his main characters. For example, Candide is introduced as a naïve follower to optimism; he is always quick to believe that every event that happens is the best possible scenario and that there is always an explanation for those scenarios. The reason for Candide being incredibly positive and hopeful is due to his mentor, Dr. Pangloss, who is introduced as the character who taught him those beliefs. Voltaire satirizes Dr. Pangloss the most, because he is a physical representation of optimism. Pangloss is first announced as a teacher of metaphysico-theologo-cosmologo-noodleology; this lengthy name is already a mockery towards optimism and Voltaire being his finest self. Pangloss first introduces his philosophy, by saying, “It is clear that things cannot be otherwise than they are, for since everything is made to serve an end, everything necessarily

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

FACT: What I found extremely fascinating in Voltaire’s work is the idea that “It is demonstrable that things cannot be otherwise than as they are; for all being created for an end, all is necessarily for the best end” (83). This quote by the character Pangloss is one of extreme optimism. He believes that they are living in the best world possible and everything that happens is meant to be. This really resonates with me because I do have the belief that God has an influence over our lives, so with that being said anything that happens good or bad God had a reason for. The concept of faith is what plays a key role in this belief; we must have faith in God and what path he paves for us whether we understand it or not.

First, Candide was madly in love with Cunegonde who eventually noticed him and lead to flirtation. Her brother caught them he was ejected from his earthly paradise. Of course he was heartbroken from

Candide is a reflection of the philosophical values of the Enlightenment. Voltaire’s novel is a satire of the Old Regime ideologies in which he critiques the political, social, and religious ideals of his time.

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

In other words; Voltaire harmonizes philosophy, criticism and encountering with “ the other ” from the eyes of naïve Candide, the main character that darts himself to the adventures in the name of love that he feels for Cunégonde and meets with people around the world with his deep curiosity. So, in this essay; notions of philosophy, optimism and the approach to “the other” of Voltaire, embodied in the main character Candide, are going to be the subject of discussion. Firstly, to start with notions of philosophy and optimism, the character Pangloss is the key point. Pangloss’ philosophy of optimism resembles the notions of German philosopher Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, as Leibniz stated that “ I laid it down that God, having chosen the most perfect of all possible worlds, had been prompted by his wisdom to permit the evil Büyükçulhacı 2 which was bound up with it, but which still did not prevent this world from being, all things considered, the best that could be chosen.

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.

The presentation explored how Voltaire satirized the idea of determinism and optimism- Enlightenment philosophies that were prevalent during his time. Determinism establishes that God sets a path for each person to follow regardless of their decisions and optimism establishes that all is for the best. Several events during Voltaire’s time lead to his disbelief of the philosophy such as the Lisbon Earthquake and the Seven Years War. Voltaire challenged these beliefs by attempting to show death and destruction throughout “Candide” and consequently showing philosophers such as Pangloss attempting to justify the events. The theme of determinism/ optimism is carried out throughoutthe novella in a satirical manner in order to show the public the absurdity of the