In his novel, Voltaire takes us on a Journey; the journey of Candide as he travels from continent to continent in search of people and in search of answers. At the heart of his trek, lies Candide’s longing for his love, Cunegonde. Throughout his journey to end up with Cunegonde, Candide faced many treacherous passages and persistent hardships along the way that seem to constantly leave him pondering philosophically with his companions or with himself. Some of these thoughts and questions that get philosophized are that of good versus evil, the meaning of existence and why events take place. “You’re a bitter man,” says Candide. “That’s because I’ve lived,” said Martin. This quote acts will act as a guide to show how Voltaire uses the adventures
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François-Marie Arouet, whose penname was Voltaire, was an 18th century French writer, historian, and philosopher who was best known for his very bold ideas. His satirical and witty attacks on religion (mostly Catholicism) and government were very controversial and seen as radical in his time period, and they actually landed him in prison multiple times and had him exiled from Paris at one point as governmental and religious leaders saw him as a nuisance and a threat. Because of the controversy surrounding his denigrating of anything from religion to different aspects of the government, Voltaire commonly faced censorship from the French government, leaving many of his works banned, including Candide! These scornful, mocking elements of religion and government are present in Candide, but the most prevalent and widely discussed of his derisive elements is his satire on Optimism and Optimistic Determinism; this will be the main focus of this …show more content…
Candide grew up listening to the Baron’s tutor, Pangloss, who was “the oracle of the establishment,” who gave lessons about optimistic determinism and that “there was no effect without cause.” Because he grew up listening to these teachings and specific thought processes, in addition to his natural innocence, Candide had no reason to not trust the ideas or to even think otherwise. In the end though, this would prove to be tested in the eyes of Candide and his acquaintances as they travel and face adversities. Cunegonde was a beautiful young woman, and daughter of the Baron, who Candide was very fond of. One night they ran into each other and end up kissing leaving Candide with a strong, sparked, romantic interest in Cunegonde only to be observed by the Baron himself. When he saw the two kissing, he grew very upset kicking Candide out of the castle. This marks the beginning of Candide’s odyssey and the first blow to Candide’s
François-Marie Arouet, whose penname was Voltaire, was an 18th century French writer, historian, and philosopher who was best known for his very bold ideas. His satirical and witty attacks on religion (mostly Catholicism) and government were very controversial and seen as radical in his time period, and they actually landed him in prison multiple times and had him exiled from Paris at one point as governmental and religious leaders saw him as a nuisance and a threat. Because of the controversy surrounding his denigrating of anything from religion to different aspects of the government, Voltaire commonly faced censorship from the French government, leaving many of his works banned, including Candide! These scornful, mocking elements of religion and government are present in Candide, but the most prevalent and widely discussed of his derisive elements is his satire on Optimism and Optimistic Determinism; this will be the main focus of this …show more content…
Candide grew up listening to the Baron’s tutor, Pangloss, who was “the oracle of the establishment,” who gave lessons about optimistic determinism and that “there was no effect without cause.” Because he grew up listening to these teachings and specific thought processes, in addition to his natural innocence, Candide had no reason to not trust the ideas or to even think otherwise. In the end though, this would prove to be tested in the eyes of Candide and his acquaintances as they travel and face adversities. Cunegonde was a beautiful young woman, and daughter of the Baron, who Candide was very fond of. One night they ran into each other and end up kissing leaving Candide with a strong, sparked, romantic interest in Cunegonde only to be observed by the Baron himself. When he saw the two kissing, he grew very upset kicking Candide out of the castle. This marks the beginning of Candide’s odyssey and the first blow to Candide’s