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Violence In Voltaire's Candide

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Some people argue that violence and war is the solution to all problems. In Candide, by Voltaire, several instances of violence are present. This violence serves to illustrate Voltaire’s message that one must find a balance between optimism and pessimism in order to live a fulfilled life. In Candide, several violent events contribute to Voltaire’s message that optimism and pessimism together lead to the best possible life. On his journey, Candide meets an old woman who has suffered through many acts of violence. She had her own buttocks cut off, as well as witnessed human cannibalism. Despite the extremely violent situations she has been in, the old woman continues to remain optimistic. However, she still realizes the harshness of these situations and debates suicide several times. Her optimism about life saves her from this deadly act. Knowing that evil exits in the world, but still remaining positive about life is the best philosophy in life, according to Voltaire. Through the downfall of optimistic characters, Voltaire’s novel Candide also seeks to reveal that those who are optimistic and pessimistic live the best lives. Candide meets John the Anabaptist while on his journey. …show more content…

The Baron, Cunegonde’s brother, does not want Cunegonde to marry Candide because he is a commoner. At first, Candide has a pessimistic attitude and accepts this fate for himself. Then, he becomes enraged and stabs his sword through the Baron. His optimism towards marrying Cunegonde is restored after committing this immoral deed. Later in the story, the Baron returns, and so does Candide’s pessimistic attitude. This time, he sends the Baron back to the Turkish chain gang to restore his hopes of marrying Cunegonde once again. This balance between pessimism and optimism helps Candide get closer to his goal of marrying Cunegonde, illustrating Voltaire’s

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The result of Candide’s journey through life is unsatisfactory and unfulfilling while Douglass achieves self-actualization and continues to help others by fighting to right injustices. In his quest to become a free man Douglass is self-reliant, resourceful and focused while Candide in his quest to marry his love Cunegonde is naïve, greedy, and selfish. The

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Candide is intent to rescue his love, Miss Cunégonde, from the governor of Buenos Aires. He requests, “… a few sheep loaded with provisions, some pebbles, and some of the mud of your country” (385), from the king of Eldorado. He knows that even a small flock of sheep laden with the pebbles and mud of Eldorado will make him the richest man in all of Europe, if not the world. He plans to use a small amount of them as payment to get Cunégonde back. The king tells Candide and Cacambo that they are foolish to leave Eldorado, but allows them to leave.

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Candide is worn down by the travesties that have happened to him and to his companions, and he decides to remove himself from that world. Although Pangloss still quotes his “best of all possible worlds” philosophy, “he no longer believed it” (Voltaire 85). Candide is further assured of his decision when they hear how the Turk remains at peace. Simply put he and his family work hard to cultivate the land (Voltaire 86). Candide see how content this man is and compares him to the men who continued to strive for power.

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It underscores that the only worthwhile thing for people to do is to cultivate their gardens. While cultivating gardens are an emblem of hero’s prospect and fortune, neglected ones lead to his misery. Voltaire provides in Candide several types of gardens. A garden that someone can be kicked out of it like what happened to Candide in baron Thunder-ten- tronckh, another garden that someone can foolishly leave as Candide did Eldorado, and a final well taken care of garden that makes human being close to happiness.

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Candide's carelessness can also come from his love for Cunegonde, his lover. The reader may assume that Candide’s love for Cunegonde blinds his judgement and results irresponsible and inattentive behavior. “When a man is in love, is jealous, and has been flogged by the Inquisition, he becomes lost to all reflection” (Voltaire pg 22). What Voltaire was trying to say was that a man is not himself when he is in love or is jealous. All Candide wants is to return to his lover so he would do anything to see her again.

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Candide travels all over the world so that he can get back to the Cunegonde. But when he eventually finds her, he sees that she is no longer beautiful. “[Cunegonde] was washing dishes here, and she’s ugly”. This passage represents the social practice that Wollstonecraft is so critical of. Once Candide realizes that Cunegonde is ugly, he has “no desire to marry

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Cristian Hines Hines 1 February 7, 2018 Loyola Professor Candide Essay In today’s society, one’s position is not decided by lineage, creed, or color. Through hard work, determination, and wealth, a person can change their status The Great Chain of Being says otherwise. Voltaire’s Candide follows the story of Candide, who struggles to achieve happiness in a world with strict social hierarchies. These social hierarchies make up the Great Chain of Being.

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Voltaire’s Candide takes us through the life and development of Candide, the protagonist. Throughout his adventures, he witnesses many travesties and sufferings. Like many Enlightenment philosophers, Pangloss, Candide’s tutor, is an optimist; this philosophy was adopted by many to help mask the horrors of the eightieth century. Pangloss teaches Candide that everything happens for a reason. Voltaire uses satire, irony and extreme exaggerations to poke fun at many aspects; such as optimism, religion, corruption, and social structures within Europe.

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The two main themes from the story are childlike belief and naïveté, as well as destructive (radical) optimism, which are embodied in the characters of the story. Candide embodies both themes because his childlike naivety and belief in Pangloss’ teachings causes him to suffer through many different disasters until he is willing to adopt another philosophy; his inability to construct his own only further illustrates his naivety and inexperience with the world. This ignorance is the root of the dangers behind radical optimism as it prevents informed, logical, and rational thinking about the world. Even after being enlisted in the army that destroys his old home, and apparently rapes and slaughters his love Cunegonde (Candide 4), Candide remains naïve and trusting. Candide’s constant loop of disasters happens only because of his naivety, and the repetition emphasizes that warning that Voltaire is trying to present to his

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In Candide Voltaire discusses the exploitation of the female race in the eighteenth century through the women in the novel. Cunegonde, Paquette, and the Old Woman suffer through rape and sexual exploitation regardless of wealth or political connections. These characters possess very little complexity or importance in Candide. With his characterization of Cunegonde, Paquette, and the Old Woman Voltaire satirizes gender roles and highlights the impotence of women in the 1800s. Cunegonde is the daughter of a wealthy German lord.

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Candide is satirizing the idea that we live in “the best of all possible worlds.” (Means, n.d.). Voltaire had a message to deliver behind creating the characterization of Cunegonde, Paquette and the Old woman in his book Candide. He wanted to review that females at that time were

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Moreover, situations these forces create, and how they are beyond and within the control of Candide. Leading to Candide’s final beliefs, and how they illustrate the follies of optimistic determinism. At the beginning of Voltaire epic Candide is a naive scholar. He strongly adheres to the beliefs laid out for him by his mentor Pangloss.

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One key facet of living in the world today is the ability for people to have free will over their own lives. In Voltaire’s story “Candide,” it is clear to observe that although Candide is free to form his own decisions, he allows himself to be strongly determined by his surroundings as well as everyone who he encounters. This story proposes that Candide is trying to find a balance between submitting completely to the speculations and actions of others while also taking control of his life through blind faith. Throughout the story, Candide encounters frequent hardships along his voyage to prosperity. These obstacles include, but are not limited to becoming a bulwark, being beaten and forced to watch his beloved Pangloss having been hanged, leaving such an amazing place as Eldorado, being lied to and tricked out of diamonds by the abb`e, killing Cunegonde’s two lovers, almost being boiled alive for killing the monkey lovers, and being persuaded to be promiscuous on Cunegonde.

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Through the protagonist Candide one can deduce Voltaire’s negative outlook on human nature. He believes every word that Pangloss says, in the same way that people of the day believed everything that the Church would say. At the beginning of the text he blindly worships Optimism and by the end of it he worships the Turk’s philosophy of labour. “I also know… that we must cultivate our garden” (Voltaire 99). However it does appear that Candide has gained more knowledge and wisdom and has therefore made a more informed decision.

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