Candide by Voltaire
Candide by Voltaire
“We must cultivate our garden”
Voltaire portrays Candide as society’s journey from pessimism to optimism. Candide comes to the realization that acceptance of the life given to a person allows that person to make the best out of it. Candide reacts to Pangloss by stating that “we must cultivate our garden” meaning a person not allowing mediocrity to govern his/her life, but by putting forth an effort to make the lives they are given the best one possible. Following the analogy “garden” refers to an individual’s personal environment consisting of their surroundings, family, and inner status. By cultivating their own “garden”, improving their inner self while accepting what they have to offer to the world rather than trying to analyze every detail of their lives as good or evil.
The resolution to the problem introduced to Candide was the practice of optimism rather than pessimism. Voltaire’s initial philosophy was that people don’t change, they only fool themselves in believing they can, but pushing past those beliefs Candide’s journey towards the realization of optimism allowed Voltaire’s first thesis to take a dynamic shift to the other side of the spectrum from viewing the world as bad or good to viewing the world as an accepted representation of happiness. In the beginning of the fable, Candide cannot find himself to live happily because of his choice to reach outside of himself instead of being content with the life given to him, but by realization, Candide now appreciates life and understands that happiness depends on an individual’s attitude. This philosophy depends on each individual’s perception of life itself.
The key to happiness is the cultivation of our garden meaning allowing the best to show itself out of any situation presented in an individual’s life. Candide’s pessimism has a solution which depicts a dictum on the right way to live life. Every individual has a responsibility to themselves and their livelihood. Rather than
“We must cultivate our garden”
Voltaire portrays Candide as society’s journey from pessimism to optimism. Candide comes to the realization that acceptance of the life given to a person allows that person to make the best out of it. Candide reacts to Pangloss by stating that “we must cultivate our garden” meaning a person not allowing mediocrity to govern his/her life, but by putting forth an effort to make the lives they are given the best one possible. Following the analogy “garden” refers to an individual’s personal environment consisting of their surroundings, family, and inner status. By cultivating their own “garden”, improving their inner self while accepting what they have to offer to the world rather than trying to analyze every detail of their lives as good or evil.
The resolution to the problem introduced to Candide was the practice of optimism rather than pessimism. Voltaire’s initial philosophy was that people don’t change, they only fool themselves in believing they can, but pushing past those beliefs Candide’s journey towards the realization of optimism allowed Voltaire’s first thesis to take a dynamic shift to the other side of the spectrum from viewing the world as bad or good to viewing the world as an accepted representation of happiness. In the beginning of the fable, Candide cannot find himself to live happily because of his choice to reach outside of himself instead of being content with the life given to him, but by realization, Candide now appreciates life and understands that happiness depends on an individual’s attitude. This philosophy depends on each individual’s perception of life itself.
The key to happiness is the cultivation of our garden meaning allowing the best to show itself out of any situation presented in an individual’s life. Candide’s pessimism has a solution which depicts a dictum on the right way to live life. Every individual has a responsibility to themselves and their livelihood. Rather than