I picked this book up because I’ve been wanting to read something by Voltaire ever since I heard Hugo throwing his name around in Les Miserables. Since then, the desire to read Voltaire has been stocked by Tolstoy, C.S. Lewis, Ben Shapiro, and Stefan Zweig. He’s a classic author that merits some attention. I must say this is not what I was expecting.
I listened to the whole thing in just a few days, it was only a few hours long. I think the simplest way to describe it is The Alchemist in Satire.
Here’s a more broken down version.
Candide grew up in a castle in Germany with the core philosophy that “this is the best of all possible worlds” caricaturized by the statement “Observe, that the nose has been formed to bear spectacles — thus we have spectacles.” obviously confusing cause and effect. the rest of the book revolves around this premise.
His adventures include getting kicked out of the castle for kissing the resident Princess (He’s illegitimate), conscription, and near execution by the Bulgars, rescuing Dr. Pangloss (the philosopher confusing cause and effect), shipwreck, rescue, love, etc.- classic tropes. The kicker is that everything is done so cynically; the holiest and respectable of people are pitted against each other and appear barbarous. Even Candide, so wide-eyed and innocent, ends up running his lovers’ brother through with a sword in his never-ending quest, not for happiness, but for the absence of misery.
Eventually, Candide ends up in the fictional land of ElDorado. ElDorado has limitless wealth and resources and no conflicts, including religious. Voltaire spares nobody in his satirical teardown of everything wrong with society, but perhaps his most burning rebuke comes out in an exchange between the king of ElDorado and Candide.
King-
“My friend,” said he, “we are all priests. The King and all the heads of families sing solemn canticles of thanksgiving every morning, accompanied by five or six thousand musicians.”
Candide-
“What! have you no monks who teach, who dispute, who govern, who cabal, and who burn people that are not of their opinion?”
The tale of misery and endless woe continues outside of ElDorado while Candide constantly meets miserable people.
One notable mention is a visit to Lord Pococurante, “who everybody says is quite happy.” Candide, in a never-ending search for happy people interprets Lord Pococurante’s pessimism and criticism of everything as a kind of happiness. Candide remarks to his scholar friend
““you will agree that this is the happiest of mortals, for he is above everything he possesses.” Candide continues
“…is there not a pleasure, in criticizing everything, in pointing out faults where others see nothing but beauties?”
Scholar-
“That is to say, that there is some pleasure in having no pleasure.”
Candide-
“Well, well, I find that I shall be the only happy man when I am blessed with the sight of my dear Cunegonde.”
Scholar-
“It is always well to hope,” said Martin.
Spoiler alert (he’s not happy with the girl)
The story eventually ends with Candide and many of his companions living on a piece of land in Italy. They are unhappy until they learn from a happy Turk that cultivating land saves the Turk and his sons from 3 great evils “weariness, vice, and want.” Candide and friends try living of the land while Pangloss constantly tries to philosophize with Candide.
The moral of the story can be summarized in Candid’s response to Pangloss’s attempts to draw him into philosophizing.
“All that is very well,” answered Candide, “but let us cultivate our garden.”
This isn’t a Lockean essay, but its philosophy is ringing. I’m a fan of the “cultivate your garden” conclusion. I’m also a fan of satire to some degree, though I’m not particularly fond of the central bash on “the best of worlds” view (It so happens that I’m a proponent, the view is a central tenant of any theodicy).
This is a good book to read if you’re looking for more questions, just don’t expect it to really answer any for you.