...CANDIDE By VOLTAIRE INTRODUCTION BY PHILIP LITTELL A PENN STATE ELECTRONIC CLASSICS SERIES PUBLICATION Candide by Voltaire, Introduction by Philip Littell is a publication of the Pennsylvania State University. This Portable Document file is furnished free and without any charge of any kind. Any person using this document file, for any purpose, and in any way does so at his or her own risk. Neither the Pennsylvania State University nor Jim Manis, Faculty Editor, nor anyone associated with the Pennsylvania State University assumes any responsibility for the material contained within the document or for the file as an electronic transmission, in any way. Candide by Voltaire, Introduction by Philip Littell, the Pennsylvania State University, Electronic Classics Series, Jim Manis, Faculty Editor, Hazleton, PA 18202-1291 is a Portable Document File produced as part of an ongoing student publication project to bring classical works of literature, in English, to free and easy access of those wishing to make use of them. Cover Design: Jim Manis; Image courtesy Wikipedia: Voltaire at 24 years of age (c. 1718) by Nicolas de Largillière Copyright © 2007 The Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University is an equal opportunity university. Voltaire CANDIDE By VOLTAIRE INTRODUCTION BY PHILIP LITTELL First Published by BONI AND LIVERIGHT, INC. PUBLISHERS NEW YORK Copyright, 1918, by Boni & Liveright, Inc. Printed in the United States...
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...Analysis of Voltaire’s Candide: A non-satirical composition of the most satirical piece of literature By: Westley (A.K.A Nicky Flash) Allen Westley Allen AP Literature Miss Gwaltney April 29, 2013 Through literary devices such as persuasion, sarcasm, and elegant rhetorics, Voltaire successfully composes possibly the most well-known satirical pieces of literature. Mad magazine, The Simpsons, and Saturday Night Live, examples of some of the comical staples that satiate our desire for humor. In our society, satire is among the most prevalent of comedic forms. This was not always true. Before the 18th century, satire was not a fully developed form. Satire, however, rose out of necessity; writers and artists needed a way to ambiguously criticize their governments, their churches, and their aristocrats. By the 18th century, satire was hugely popular. “Satire is a sort of glass, wherein beholders do generally discover everybody’s face but their own”. (Swift) Satire as an art form has its roots in the classics, especially in the writings of Voltaire. Satire as it was originally proposed was a form of literature using sarcasm, irony, and wit, to bring about a change in society, but in the eighteenth century Voltaire, Jonathan Swift and William Hogarth expanded satire to include politics, as well as art. The political climate of the time was one of tension. Any criticism of government would bring harsh punishments, sometimes exile or death. In order to voice opinions without...
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...Candide Essay Assignment TA: Véronique Church-Duplessis Tutorial: 7-8 SS 2104 Sajid Borhan 998931036 Voltaire in his novella Candide portrays the adventures of a young man named Candide as he faces numerous difficulties after he is forced to leave his sheltered life of the court. Voltaire, in his satire, explores many themes. Voltaire being a critic of the Church does not show the religious institutions and the people associated with it in good light, as demonstrated by the various characters in Candide. There are few portrayals of religious characters in a positive tone. This essay will discuss and analyze Voltaire’s view on religion and how he expresses his discontent and negative impression. This essay will discuss the theme of religion as portrayed in the novel and will further reinforce Voltaire’s view on certain aspects with other primary and secondary sources. Religious intolerance was a subject Voltaire dealt with in many of his works, especially Candide. The part where Candide escapes from the Bulgarians and encounters a Protestant man and women who drive Candide away by throwing garbage on him shows religious intolerance and religious zeal, “The orator's wife, putting her head out of the window, and spying a man that doubted whether the Pope was Anti-Christ, poured over him a full.... Oh, heavens! To what excess does religious zeal carry the ladies...” There are many characters present in Candide which are associated with religion; however Voltaire...
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...Ra’Kel Brown ♥ 900828441 Candide Chapter 5: Identifying Various Philosophical Positions Candide is Voltaire’s criticism against nobility, philosophy, the church, and cruelty. The novel savagely simulates a number of Enlightenment philosophies. In chapter 5, two examples of the four philosophical positions were demonstrated. The book is mainly about Candide, the illegitimate nephew of a German baron. Before chapter 5, an Anabaptist named Jacques takes Candide and Pangloss, Candide’s teacher in. The three travel to Lisbon together, but before they could arrive there, their ship runs into a storm. Despite his kindness, Jacques is pessimistic about human nature. He drowns in the Bay of Lisbon while trying to save the life of an ungrateful sailor; dying in his altruism. Candide and Pangloss arrive in Lisbon to find it destroyed by an earthquake and under the control of the Inquisition. There were many groans of dying and buried victims from the ruins. Pangloss and Candide help them, and Pangloss comforts the victims by telling them the earthquake is for the best. However, one of the officers of the Inquisition accuses Pangloss of heresy because of his optimism. He states that the fall and punishment of man proves that everything is not for the best. In this chapter, Pangloss gives a great portrayal of philosophical optimism. Philosophical optimism, developed by Leibniz between the late 17th and early 18th century, is the belief that this is the best of all possible worlds and humans...
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...Ra’Kel Brown ♥ 900828441 Candide Chapter 5: Identifying Various Philosophical Positions Candide is Voltaire’s criticism against nobility, philosophy, the church, and cruelty. The novel savagely simulates a number of Enlightenment philosophies. In chapter 5, two examples of the four philosophical positions were demonstrated. The book is mainly about Candide, the illegitimate nephew of a German baron. Before chapter 5, an Anabaptist named Jacques takes Candide and Pangloss, Candide’s teacher in. The three travel to Lisbon together, but before they could arrive there, their ship runs into a storm. Despite his kindness, Jacques is pessimistic about human nature. He drowns in the Bay of Lisbon while trying to save the life of an ungrateful sailor; dying in his altruism. Candide and Pangloss arrive in Lisbon to find it destroyed by an earthquake and under the control of the Inquisition. There were many groans of dying and buried victims from the ruins. Pangloss and Candide help them, and Pangloss comforts the victims by telling them the earthquake is for the best. However, one of the officers of the Inquisition accuses Pangloss of heresy because of his optimism. He states that the fall and punishment of man proves that everything is not for the best. In this chapter, Pangloss gives a great portrayal of philosophical optimism. Philosophical optimism, developed by Leibniz between the late 17th and early 18th century, is the belief that this is the best of all possible worlds and humans...
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...Henry CWL 320I October 25, 2012 Writing Assignment 3: Essay In Candide, the focus point that Volataire criticizes is based on the German philosopher Leibniz. By examining Voltaire’s Candide, we can see that he satirizes war while using illogical fallacies and rhetorical techniques to symbolize Leibniz’s false philosophy of optimism. His arguments are seen when his writing contradicts what is being explained. In a scene where Candide is running through a war zone, Voltaire writes, “the entertainment began by a discharge of cannon, which, in the twinkling of an eye, laid flat about 6,000 men on each side.” He uses the innocent terms “entertainment” and “twinkling” to lighten the mood, exaggerate how impossible those words can fit in the context, and show the audience that war is more terrifying than it seems. The use of those terms is normally used positively to describe something, but instead Voltaire decides to include it in a sentence where it defines horrid actions. This is an example of one style of writing he continuously uses throughout the book to express his satire of war. Voltaire finds no connection between war and Leibniz’s philosophy of everything happens for a reason. He uses the sentence, “The musket bullets swept away, out of the best of all possible worlds, nine or ten thousand scoundrels that infested its surface. The bayonet was next the sufficient reason of the deaths of several thousands” to describe the horrors of war and how meaningless...
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...Luis E. Torrijos Oro World Literature II ENG 20200 October 10, 2014 Prof. Hurt Spencer Analysis # 2 Candide Candide is a satire novella written in the year 1750 by the French philosopher Voltaire. It is a story of optimism, which is focused on the life of Candide, and his journey through the outside world that transformed his way of thinking about life. The question for this literary analysis is if Candide gain insight during the story, and my answer is yes. Humanity can relate the life of Candide with real life. I believe that this was the purpose of the story, which is to send everyone a message of how to develop ourselves through life. I believe everything that went through Candide life was happening in order to get him out of his bubble. As we know from the novella, Candide was living in a paradise before he was captured, what happened after he was captured, was a way to show him that the world is not quite what it seems to be. In other words, the bubble in which he was trapped burst, after this he had to learn how things were in the outside world. I can easily relate to Candide in that manner, before coming to the United States I was living in what I would say is my own paradise, everything was done for me, cooking, laundry, and cleaning. After I moved out from my home country and came here to study I started to do everything by myself, the experiences that I have had here have change me. I have become more mature since then, and when the day that I go back...
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...Candide no longer wants to marry Cunégonde, but the baron is so insulting and Cunégonde is so insistent that Candide is determined to follow through on his promise. He consults his advisors Pangloss, Martin, and Cacambo regarding this decision. Pangloss gives a dissertation in which he proves that the young baron has no rights at all over his sister and that Cunégonde therefore has every right to marry Candide if she wishes it. Martin’s advice is to throw the baron promptly into the sea. Cacambo would suggest that the baron be returned to the galleys and then sent back to the Father General in Rome. Candide returns the Baron to his slavery in the galleys. There would be the thought of making love to Cunégonde in her current state is really unappealing to...
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...Voltaire’s Candide Affirmation? Humanities 112 Assignment 1: Essay In Voltaire’s Candide, or as I would like to call it, the Expect the Unexpected book, there are numerous surprise twist. Throughout this dramatic satire Candide goes through several tragedies. During each event his understanding and belief in his faith is tested and put into question, as shown in chapter six. Voltaire particularly picks on the Resurrection Story. He toys with the readers mind by challenging the validity of and devaluing the Resurrection story. Candide suffers the loss of many loved ones, and then they are reintroduced again in later chapters of the story. In the end, Voltaire does the exactly opposite of what he sets out to do, but reaffirms his belief in god. In chapter six, Candide was relieved to find out that he was not going to be burned in the slow fire, but was beaten instead. This would have given him and the condemned a sense of false hope. Instead they burned two of the condemned men and hung Dr. Pangloss. Like Candide, I felt amazed, shocked, confused, and a little terrified for his fate. On other hand, in keeping with Dr. Pangloss theory, “that all things happen for the best possible end” (Voltaire, Chapter 6: How the Portuguse Made a Superb Auto-Da-Fe` to Prevent Future earthquakes and how Candide Underwent Public Flagellation, 1758), gives you hope for Candide’s future, even if he is in doubt. By the time we get to chapter twenty-eight Candide is a better...
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...Candide On the surface, Candide by Voltaire, tells the story of a man who goes through many hardships and challenges to chase after the woman he loves. If one just looks at Candide’s story they might only see a potential hero’s journey. How the story is written, is what gives it deeper meaning. Voltaire builds his story and message on irony, exaggeration, double-speak, name-dropping, and historical drama. All of those components make up Voltaire’s satirical novel and they indicate a criticism of the society that Voltaire lived in during his life. He used satire to criticize every facet of society including the hypocrisy of religion, other writers, treatment of women, and any contemporary issues of the time. The criticisms show that Voitaire did not see the era that he lived in as the best possible world, but one that is ruled by chance and human cruelty lived. To him there is no “perfect” society. Candide is about the illegitimate nephew of a German nephew, Candide, who is expelled from the baron’s castle when he is caught kissing the Baron’s daughter, Cunégonde. He grew up in the Baron’s castle under the watch of a scholar named Pangloss. Pangloss main teaching to Candide is to see the world they live in as the best possible world and to see the optimism even in the darkest of situations. The book highlights what happens after Candide is expelled from the baron’s castle. This includes his quest to marry the baron’s daughter. Many dark events take place in Candide’s story; most...
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...Voltaire writes of the odyssey that the blindly optimistic protagonist takes to reunite himself with his love in the novel Candide. This sanguine character, Candide, witnesses and endures many highly exaggerated events related to philosophy, war, religion and love, created by the author to satirize blind optimism and illustrate to the reader how it blurs people’s perceptions of life, producing adverse effects. Voltaire heavily derides adhering to and holding sacred philosophies without thinking about what they truly mean. Pangloss, the professor in the story, acts as a source of much of the blind optimism for other characters, preaching “metaphysico-theology-cosmolo-nigology” (20). Voltaire exaggerates this title by giving it a name with an...
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...Voltaire style consists of much exaggeration and irony bringing out the humor in the worst of situations by using ironic adjectives to unlikely nouns. He uses both long, complex sentences and short simple ones. His dialogues are representative of his characters as is seen by the long winded arguments of Pangloss and the descriptively exaggerated stories of the old woman. Pangloss and his student Candide maintain that “everything is for the best in this best of all possible worlds. Voltaire does not accept that a perfect God (or any God) has to exist; he can afford to mock the idea that the world must be completely good, and he heaps merciless satire on this idea throughout the novel. The optimists, Pangloss and Candide, suffer and witness a wide variety of horrors—floggings, rapes, robberies, unjust executions, disease, an earthquake, betrayals, and crushing ennui. These horrors do not serve any apparent greater good, but point only to the cruelty and folly of humanity and the indifference of the natural world. Pangloss struggles to find justification for the terrible things in the world, but his arguments are simply absurd, as, for example, when he claims that syphilis needed to be transmitted from the Americas to Europe so that Europeans could enjoy New World delicacies such as chocolate. More intelligent and experienced characters, such as the old woman, Martin, and Cacambo, have all reached pessimistic conclusions about humanity and the world. By the novel’s end, even Pangloss...
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...A novel written entirely in satire, Candide. Written by the famous writer, Voltaire, Candide tells the story of a young man, Candide, and his close friends' misadventures around the world. Voltaire, a French enlightenment writer believed in freedom of speech and to express his belief he wrote a novel dedicated to mocking life itself. The enlightenment, a period that occurred during the eighteenth century, was a time of refinement and understand. During this period people began to use science and logic as a way of thinking, instead of religion. Voltaire mocks issues such as cruel punishment, women's rights, and corrupt governors by using satire to portray an exaggerated event. However, these exaggerated events lead to an intellectual understanding of the irony and stupidity of these occurrences. Cruel and unusual punishment is a powerful issue that Voltaire mentions several times in Candide. He writes about these issues in either a comedic way or an exaggerated way. When Voltaire talks about how Candide was forced “to run the gauntlet six and thirty times through the whole regiment, or to have his brains blown out with a dozen musket-balls" (Chapter 2). He adds small details like, "six and thirty times," to make fun of the punishment. He also gives Candide the option of being shot by a dozen...
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...Voltaire, known as the father of the French Revolution, was one of the greatest Enlightenment thinkers of the 1800s. He was very critical of religion and the world around him, and his satirical works often angered the aristocracy around him. In Voltaire’s Candide, Candide’s adventure is told as a coming of age story. Voltaire wrote Candide this way to comment on the enlightenment ideas of the time through Candide’s responses. Voltaire was “not afraid to debunk the foolish facts and fancy of humanity,” (Academy) and used candide his vessel. Through Candide’s growth, Voltaire emphasizes the importance of exercising one’s own thought instead of blindly following others philosophies. When Candide begins his story in Westphalia, he is innocent...
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...Chapter 3: Bulgars massacring the German countryside Chapter 5: Sailor throwing Jacques the Anabaptist overboard Chapter 9: Candide kills the Grand Inquisitor and Don Issachar Chapter 15: Candide (the innocent and pure character) stabs Cunegondes brother only because he said he wouldn't let Candide marry her Chapter 23: Execution of Admiral John Byng because he didn't fight the French well enough Body IV: Poor Treatment and Perception of Women Topic Sentence: Chapter 3: Women were raped and disemboweled by the armies Chapter 8: Cunegonde being raped by a Bulgar soldier, then being sold to the Jew Don Issacar by the Bulgar capitan after he was tired of her; she was being "shared" by Don and the Grand Inquisitor Chapter 11: old woman taken as...
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