Voltaire; Candide Analysis
“Voltaire’s Candide. Discuss the novel as a medium of philosophical critique and the possible meanings of the final words: “we must cultivate our garden”
The picaresque novella “Candide” written by Francois-Marie Voltaire explores the use of satire as a medium to comment and confront dominant philosophy of his context, Liebniz philosophy of optimism. Voltaire embeds a premise of protest against surrendering to apathy and animalistic desires instead of using logic and rationale to become accountable for ones own actions. This is epitomised by the final words; “we must cultivate our garden” inferring one must partake in the making of one’s own destiny.
Voltaire uses the repetition of the phrase; “all is for the best” embedded without the novella to parallel the common philosophies of one of the main characters, Pangloss, and a prevalent philosopher in Voltaire’s time , G.W Leibniz. Leibniz believed that “God created everything in the world for the good of man, if evil is in the world, then God created it for the good of mankind, so all is for the best” and it is this notion of blindly surrendering that Voltaire protests, the overly simplistic avoidance of rationalizing evil and suffering. Voltaire conveys this through repetition as it continually undermines the merit of the phrase each additional time it is used, and to subtly challenge the reader to question this way of thinking. He uses satire in the form of exhausted repetition to confront apathetic mindsets of surrendering to a dimension of fate; “I like the things the way they are because they suit me and I don’t know any better” which is a direct allusion to the Pope’s speech of; “whatever is, is right”. Voltaire parallels these two phrases to trivialise their meaning whilst challenging optimists who cling to the status quo out of fear of change or independent thought.
The parallel of animalistic urges to man is effectively used in reference to Darwinism. Voltaire utilises irony to commonly mock
The picaresque novella “Candide” written by Francois-Marie Voltaire explores the use of satire as a medium to comment and confront dominant philosophy of his context, Liebniz philosophy of optimism. Voltaire embeds a premise of protest against surrendering to apathy and animalistic desires instead of using logic and rationale to become accountable for ones own actions. This is epitomised by the final words; “we must cultivate our garden” inferring one must partake in the making of one’s own destiny.
Voltaire uses the repetition of the phrase; “all is for the best” embedded without the novella to parallel the common philosophies of one of the main characters, Pangloss, and a prevalent philosopher in Voltaire’s time , G.W Leibniz. Leibniz believed that “God created everything in the world for the good of man, if evil is in the world, then God created it for the good of mankind, so all is for the best” and it is this notion of blindly surrendering that Voltaire protests, the overly simplistic avoidance of rationalizing evil and suffering. Voltaire conveys this through repetition as it continually undermines the merit of the phrase each additional time it is used, and to subtly challenge the reader to question this way of thinking. He uses satire in the form of exhausted repetition to confront apathetic mindsets of surrendering to a dimension of fate; “I like the things the way they are because they suit me and I don’t know any better” which is a direct allusion to the Pope’s speech of; “whatever is, is right”. Voltaire parallels these two phrases to trivialise their meaning whilst challenging optimists who cling to the status quo out of fear of change or independent thought.
The parallel of animalistic urges to man is effectively used in reference to Darwinism. Voltaire utilises irony to commonly mock