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Examples Of Optimism In Candide

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The fall of optimism

Throughout the tale of Candide, Voltaire attacks many of the popular movements in his contemporary philosophy some of the most obviously targeted by these criticisms are organized religion, and the themes of philosophical speculation as well as optimism and disillusion. With the Voltaire seeks to disillude his readers, to take away the nobility and the selflessness they associated with people of power wither that power be intellectual, religious or given by rank.
Candide shows the huge division between the way the world actually is and the way it is many philosophers and religious leaders explain. “the teachings of religious groups and philosophers that were popular during Voltaire's life are made to looks laughable …show more content…

In the beginning of the tale Candide is the most faithful of students ready at all time to argue his teacher’s beliefs. But after traveling the world and seeing countless acts of violence greed and cruelty it becomes harder and harder for him to blindly accept that all horrible things that happen in the world happens for the greater good of the world. The world (with very few exceptions) is filled with evil, war, and religious confusion he also learns that the best of intentions is no protection from the most devastating out …show more content…

“Many people began to doubt the existence of an all-powerful and infinitely good God: if there were such a God, why would he let such awful things happen? The branch of philosophy which tried to respond to this question was called theodicy, and its most famous proponent was Gottfried Leibniz, the historically real philosopher and mathematician on whose teachings those of Pangloss are modeled. Leibniz argued that evil existed because it was necessary to bring about an ultimate good, as part of a “pre-established harmony,” created by God.”(Havens pg. 109) Voltaire being the deitest rejected the notion that of the church being the body of god and that the bible was His word. Though he was not an aeathiest, he believed instead that the Creator could not be existed because the world could not be explained without God, and that if God didn’t exist then it would be a necessity for man to have created Him for a since of morality. Voltaire coined the frase "If God did not exist, we would have to invent

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