Voltaire: Candide (Volume D)

Voltaire

• Deism

• Pantheism

• corruption of the social order

• ancien regime

• democracy

• fair trial, freedom of religion, no slavery

Voltaire’s Background

1. Optimism: The universe is the best possible one God made, as a perfect God leads to a perfect universe.

2. Sufficient reason: All things exist, all events occur, and all truth/ knowledge is obtained for a specific reason (often known only to God).

3. Preestablished harmony: Cause—effect argument: one thing’s purpose corresponds to other things’ purposes.

4. Plenitude: Infinite possibilities arise in the best of all possible worlds; because human existence is finite, we are ill-equipped to understand nature’s occurrences in the long term.

5. Subservience to a corrupt leader is preferred to revolution.

Rejection of Leibniz

Diegesis

Utopian Writing

Voyage Tale

• anti-Semitism• Utopia• natural disasters• war• foreign lands (particularly the Americas)

Satire and Incongruity

Gardens

What are the dangers of optimism or, conversely, of skepticism? How do you see these two theories operating in Candide?

Discussion Questions

Is utopia desirable, or do humans need conflict and challenge in order to find purpose and fulfillment in their lives? Where do you see evidence of this in Candide?

Discussion Questions

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