Candide Overall Thoughts

Overall I found Candide an enjoyable story. Voltaire's writing style makes it slightly confusing, but once you adjust to that the story is rather simple. The thirty chapters of the book fly by, but seem as if each one could stand alone as it's own story. Voltaire uses this piece, and the many short chapters to satirize different items. In each chapter he seems to attach his loathing satire to one or more pieces of society, and make fun of them to the point where he has gone too far. In chapter 26, Candide somehow has dinner with six different exiled kings. He thinks that their lives are terrible, saying "Who in your opinion is more to be pitied, the Emperor Achmet, the Emperor Ivan, King Charles Edward, or myself? (p. 67)." While all of these men have been sent away as kings, they all still live luxurious lives. The fact that Candide would think that their lives are just terrible is laughable, seeing that they were once kings. Candide seems to never take into account others who have had things worse than himself, and spends the story obsessed with himself and his own hardships. Voltaire uses the character of Candide excellently as a mode of his satire

Candide Ending

I found the ending to Voltaire's Candide rather unfulfilling. After all of the things that Candide has gone through, the terrible events he is left with a simple garden and some people who he is not truly friends with. His one true love has turned horribly ugly, and he has nothing left to do but wallow in his sadness. That is what happens in the physical sense. In a more figurative view though, at the end Candide repeats "We must cultivate our garden. (75)" This shows how Candide has decided that he must forge his own way in life. He must make life the best as he can. This is far from where Candide began simply believing any thing he had heard. In the literal sense I found the ending of Candide terrible. In the figurative sense it made sense though. Candide finally reaches an achievement that he couldn't get to throughout the rest of the story. Thinking for himself. He finally becomes self sufficient and realizes that he knows what is best. It seems that his many experiences have actually helped him, rather than simply sliding off of him as they did in the past.

Candide Meaning

I believe the meaning in  Voltaire's Candide lies directly with what the reader is left with for first and last impressions. At both of these points in the story, the reader is given philosophical theories. The first is said to be true at the beginning and progressively shown to not be true. The world is not the greatest of all worlds, because it is what you make it. I believe that is the primary message Voltaire is trying to show us. Just as Candide cultivates his farm, we must cultivate our own lives. Rather than allowing ourselves to believe that everything will come with time, we must go out and reach for what we want. We have to be active in our goals and achievements in life, and put an effort across. We must take our lives in our own hands and use the world around us to achieve what we want. Voltaire writes "This new adventure caused them to philosophize more than ever. (73)." This shows that rather than living life, the men are discussing philosophy. This book shows that Philosophy in life is nothing when life itself is not being lived.

Candide's Growth as a Character

Throughout the story of Candide, by Voltaire, Candide seems to never really evolve. Through out a vast majority of the book, he feebly agrees with his former teacher's philosophical teachings. He is put through so many awful things, yet he remains optimistic. He continues to believe that everything will come out in the end. It is comical how Candide fails to evolve throughout the story. What is odd however, is that at the time where most things in his life seem to fall in place, he believes in the optimistic theory the least. After his teacher has somehow arisen from the dead he says "Now that you have been hanged, dissected, beaten to a pulp, and sentenced to the galleys, do you still think everything is the best in this world? (70)." This shows that doubt has finally crept into Candide's mind. He has never before shown a true likelihood to not believe in the fact that everything will turn out for the best. While Candide's growth takes a very long time with a long and drawn out process, he does finally make a transformation. That is what it must be called, because he seemingly randomly decides that he does not agree with Pangloss any more, and that he has now matured into his own man.

Pity in Candide

In Candide by Voltaire, pity is an aspect that is quite often addressed. As Candide goes through his terrible events, he becomes to have pity for himself. He gets down, and believes that his life is the worst. When he meets Cunegonde again, she goes into her own pity. Her story is just a form of her saying that her situation is less than his. Throughout the story, there seem to be characters trying to say that their life is worse than one another. They all experience bad situations, but the need to one up some one over it just seems ludicrous. Over and over again, we meet characters whose stories become more and more pitiful. The old woman says "Miss, replied the old woman, you do not know my birth; and were I to show you my backside, you would not talk in that manner, but would suspend your judgement." (23). After Undergone finishes telling her horrific story, we are led straight into another terrible story.I seem to find myself thinking this book should be called "A serious of Unfortunate Events" rather than "Candide."

Problems with Philosophy Candide Part II

One of the things Voltaire stresses in his book Candide, is the importance of noting how real world occurances are more important than abstract philosophical musings. Candide is constantly trying to reason what is happening to him through philosophy. Rather than becoming a hardened soul, he remains soft and gullible. He doesn't discover common sense through out the section, which is ridiculous. Candide simply falls into traps set for him by the author. Because Candide doesn't actually understand how the world works, he simply does what other people tell him. I found it absurd how Candide never realizes that the world is a dangerous place, he consistently echoes back to the philosophy established in section one "All is necessarily for the best end (1)."

Problem of Optimism Candide Part 2

One of the things Voltaire focuses on in Candide is the problem of idealism. Voltaire continues to show the problems with Pangloss's theories that were given in the first section. Candide says "The sea of this new world is already better than our European sea; it is calmer, the winds more regular. It is certainly the New World which is the best of all worlds. (23)." This illustrates Candide's unending optimism. Despite all of the pitfalls that have occurred on his journey, he still believes life will work out. This is illustrated not to be true the many misfortunes that come upon poor Candide. After being beaten and robbed, driven to murder, we can see Candide's story will only become more grim. Candide believes in his tutors theories to the furthest extent, and Voltaire does his best to illustrate the holes in the story. While not directly stating it, he illustrates through his story telling how there are more than a few holes in Pangloss's philosophy.