Destiny?

As I reached the end of Candide, I wasn’t really sure what to expect. Surely a tragedy, something so horrifying that it would surely give me nightmares and cause me to question the nature of mankind, or a utopian ending, with everything ending perfectly and all the characters living happily ever after, or even no ending at all; for him to simply leave the reader hanging in the middle of the narrative for the alleged freedom that gives the reader to finish the story in their own way. I was prepared for any type of ending Voltaire decided to throw upon the reader, that is, anything but what he actually did.

The ending of the book, as unexpected as it was, didn’t cause me to question religion, war, money, morality, philosophy, or even optimism. On the other hand, it did cause be to question destiny and Pangloss’ theory regarding it. Although most of the events that happened at the end gave Candide what he had been searching for throughout the entire novel, they weren’t particularly what he had asked for. Had everything he had previously done led to this “best of all possible worlds”? Could this even be considered as such?

Although I am not thrilled with the ending the book had, I am not completely disappointed. Voltaire managed to surprise his readers one last time, and in doing so sparked revolutionary thoughts in his audience. The point he got across is that if we want something to change, we can’t just expect to sit back and allow others to do all the work, because things won’t end up the way you hoped they would. If you want change you must take matters into your own hands and fight for what you want in order to create your own perfect world.

More than Words

Seeing as Candide is a satirical novel, the writing style used by Voltaire is of great importance. The way he wrote the book gives this work just as much meaning as the content of the book itself. Knowledge of the time period is necessary in order to fully understand all of Voltaire’s jokes, many of which, I am sure, went straight over my head.

Voltaire’s subtle references give the book a more ironic tone, and make his criticism more notorious. However, these judgmental assessments are present in the form of his writing as well, making fun of cultures by giving some of his characters long names or describing the characters with long job titles which are meant to describe how “important” their roles are in the story, when he is actually criticizing society at the time for giving big names to people that don’t do or say anything productive.

The way he plays with the narrator’s point of view is also interesting, since most of the story is told in a third person viewpoint, but the reader often sees events through the eyes of Candide. Whether we are meant to sympathize or feel identified by him eludes me, but I do believe that he is meant as an impersonation of common men, and his actions and thoughts represent those which are had by most of society.

Practice What You Preach

Shortly after arriving in Eldorado, Candide and Cacambo come across young school children playing with gold nuggets, emeralds, and rubies in the road. Upon seeing this Candide remarks, “The children of the Kings of this country must be well brought up, if they are taught to despise gold and precious stones.”(p.75) He marvels at their righteousness and how unmaterialistic they are. From a young age they have been taught to loathe items that have brought about many greed driven conflicts among humanity. However, just as he praises this admirable quality he and Cacambo quickly “pick up the gold, emeralds, and rubies.”(p.75)

Here Candide fails to “practice what he preaches.” He approves of the children’s attitude toward the riches, yet double crosses himself by immediately turning around to pick them up for his own benefit.

This is called hypocrisy. People tend to do this much too often. They claim to believe in one thing, in this case not being avaricious, yet mere seconds later they completely turn their back on this and greedily hoard the goods in front of them.

Candide also demonstrates his hypocritical side when he compliments the country of Eldorado. He says, ”What country can this be?...It must be unknown to the rest of the world, because everything is so different from what we are used to. It is probably the country where all goes well.”(p.77) From this excerpt it is evident that Candide admires Eldorado and its ways. Yet, soon after he decides to leave and return to Europe. He contradicts himself by first saying that this must be, “the best of all possible worlds.” (p.20), then later expressing his desire to leave. Candide had struggled to find this best of all possible worlds and when he finally arrives, he wants to return to the land of hardships and troubles. He’s hypocritical in the way that he can never make a concrete statement. He is constantly doing the opposite of what he claims to believe. It all comes down to “practicing what you preach”, something Candide seems completely incapable of doing time after time.

Treatment According to Status

"Having heard the old woman´s story, the lovely Cunégonde began to pay her all the respect due to a person of her rank and quality."(pg. 58)

After Cunégonde learned that the old woman had been a princess, she concluded that she now deserved reverence. When the old woman was only a lowly servant she was completely worthless, yet since she proved to be,“the daughter of Pope Urban X and Princess of Palestrina.”(pg. 49) it clearly made her noble and important. On Cunégonde’s part it is extremely lovelyto have recognized this. The average person would have simply overlooked this increase in status since after all, she was no longer a princess. If people are below you on the social ladder, then you are almost expected to treat them like scum. However, if they are of equal or greater importance,you must treat them accordingly. What kind of shamefulflawed logic is this?

In reality, this is a cruel conclusion to make. Cunégonde should have been addressing the old woman with respect all along, regardless of her position in society. People are all equal and social classes shouldn’t separate them from receiving the same treatment. The way the excerpt implies Cunégonde’s selflessness at recognizing the old woman’s increase in status only makes matters worse. How in the world can someone be acclaimed as “lovely” for recognizing that a fellow human being deserves respect?

The worst part is that this kind of “treatment according to status” is practiced throughout society. Many people who have maids or drivers treat them disrespectfully, claiming that “they work for me”. Yet then they turn to an acclaimed equal, such as a friend, and their tone of contempt immediately vanishes.

In the society we live in, this is so common that many people don’t even notice it. However, it happens constantly. The same people whom if asked would agree with the idea that all men are created equal, fail to put this into practice and instead turn to the shameful business of “treatment according to status”.

A Peculiar Monarch

Throughout the story, the character that provides us with the most insight regarding Voltaire and his views of the world is Pangloss. Sometimes literally, but more often through satire, we learn who Voltaire was and what he believed in through the words of this “wise” character.

“For it is impossible for things not to be where they are, because everything is for the best.” (pg 35).

This particular teaching made by Pangloss relates to the very beginning of the book, where this extraordinary teacher claims “It is proved…that things cannot be other than they are, for since everything was made for a purpose, it follows that everything was made for the best purpose.” (pg. 20).

Pangloss’ reasoning constitutes that everything that exists does so because that was the way it was meant to be. This connects to the book by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, The Little Prince, where in one of his journeys, the Prince encounters an absolute monarch. This character rules over everything, yet he commands them to do what they are meant to do, which defeats the purpose. He has the power because all of his subjects obey him, since none of his orders can be disobeyed.

Both Pangloss and the King share the same reasoning, which as a matter of fact makes no sense. If one were to follow their train of thought, nothing would ever be done and humanity would be at a loss. We cannot wonder through life without doing anything, arguing that things are always the way they are meant to be. If everyone thought like they did, the human race would be at a standstill and progress would be impossible.

By criticizing this, Voltaire is stating that people need to change in order to succeed and move forward, and this is what the French Revolution, despite its many hardships, finally accomplished.

Practice What You Preach

Voltaire, being one of the most influential philosophers in the Enlightenment, and a predecessor of the French Revolution, was bound to include some of the reality his country was facing at the time Candide was written. Although the setting of the novel doesn’t relate perfectly to Voltaire’s reality, the main issues regarding society are still present.

“’Men,’ he said, ‘must have somewhat altered the course of nature; for they were not born wolves, yet they have become wolves. God did not give them twenty-four-pounders or bayonets, yet they have made themselves bayonets and guns to destroy each other.” (pg 31).

Through Pangloss’ speech, Voltaire voices his concern over mankind and what it has turned out to be. Although he did believe in God, he didn’t believe in the God of the Bible, or any other being in sacred texts. By comparing men to wolves, he not only reduced human kind to being mere animals, he also implies that we are beings that cannot control our instincts, and have no notion of right and wrong, and are therefore unable to take the correct decisions to benefit ourselves and others.

He says that we have evolved in a way that is harmful towards us and the environment around us. However, this entails that we once had a choice. We had the possibility of turning out well and taking the correct decisions, yet we failed and the wrong turns we took determine where we stand today.

This strong critique towards society and war has a deep meaning, especially considering who wrote it and the role he had in French independence. His revolutionary ideas led the country towards war, and although the nation gained its freedom, it also lost a lot of people, ideas and culture along the way.

Aren't Morals Enough?

Throughout the history of mankind, war has been a constant factor that never fails to show up, even over the slightest differences. Even before any form of civilization came along, wars were being used to settle all types of disputes, including those fought over land or food. As time went by, wars became more and more vicious, and as technology advanced, so did these massacres.

In the early stages of mankind, things such as laws and governments didn’t exist, and society was free to do as it wished, even if that included harming others. Several hundred years ago, men started to develop certain rules and regulations that would control the general public, with the excuse of protecting people’s rights and fighting for the wellbeing of society. Thus came the creation of a certain code of conduct, some limitations as to what was and wasn’t legal during times of war.

“It was no more than a smoking ruin, for the Bulgars had burned it to the ground in accordance with the terms of international law.” (pg. 25).

Voltaire’s use of satire in describing the war is remarkable because although he describes it as something beautiful and attractive, one can tell how strongly opposed to it he was. This is exemplified when Candide has just witnessed the “beauty and brilliance” (pg. 25) of war, and decided to go to the village of Abar, where he wanted to take some time to think about the horrors he had observed. He says that the “bugles, fifes, oboes, drums, and salvoes of artillery produced such a harmony as Hell itself could not rival.” (pg 25). The shrewd demonstrations of violence that can be perceived during times of war are so atrocious that they don’t even compare to what happens in the depths of Hell itself.

How is it logical that things such as war laws exist? I find it hard to decide whether I am glad they do because they spare at least some part of our humanity, or to be completely horrified to think that they are even necessary. Are human beings so vile that they need an entity to tell them that killing innocent civilians is wrong? How can there even be laws in scenarios where torture and murder are the main objectives? Is there really no end to our malice?