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Candide, or Optimism

Candide, or Optimism

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  • Create Date：2021-06-08 08:53:46
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
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  • Author：Voltaire
  • ISBN：0140455108
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Summary

'The prince of philosophical novels' John Updike

In Candide， Voltaire threw down an audacious challenge to the philosophical views of the Enlightenment to create one of the most glorious satires of the eighteenth century。 His eponymous hero is an innocent young man whose tutor， Pangloss， has instilled in him the belief that 'all is for the best'。 But when his love for the Baron's rosy-cheeked daughter is discovered， Candide is cast out to make his own fortune。 As he and his various companions roam over the world， an outrageous series of disasters - earthquakes， syphilis， the Inquisition - sorely test the young hero's optimism， holding a mirror up to all fanatics， zealots and moral reformers of humankind。

Translated and Edited by Theo Cuffe with an Introduction by Michael Wood

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Reviews

Ribal Haj ，

One of the most important books I’ve read in my life。 At a time when I’d lost connection with who I am， this book came to remind me to cultivate my garden。 I have being doing so ever since。

Pino ，

Even though I don’t agree with what IMO is one of the main themes of the book （Don’t eat the Fruit of Knowledge， live in ignorance and you should be happy）， it made me think about the way I see the world and live my life and I always appreciate a book that makes me think。The plot and the characters are only a tool for the author to explore this theme and parody literature， optimistic philosophy， social norms， etc。 And I， somehow， still liked it！

Ben ，

Chalk it up to its snappy title or its iconic conclusion if you wish， but Voltaire’s satire has garnered quite the reputation for itself over the past two-hundred years。 ‘Candide’ delivers on its premise in spades—it is consistently witty and absolutely flies by， courtesy of Voltaire’s luscious prose—but it does end up feeling a tad trite as it wears on。There’s only so far that the kind of criticism offered by Voltaire can carry a narrative: as the novella continues， the repeated references to P Chalk it up to its snappy title or its iconic conclusion if you wish， but Voltaire’s satire has garnered quite the reputation for itself over the past two-hundred years。 ‘Candide’ delivers on its premise in spades—it is consistently witty and absolutely flies by， courtesy of Voltaire’s luscious prose—but it does end up feeling a tad trite as it wears on。There’s only so far that the kind of criticism offered by Voltaire can carry a narrative: as the novella continues， the repeated references to Pangloss [his Leibniz/Rousseau stand-in] wind up feeling less and less biting and more and more bitter， as if Voltaire has a point to prove but doesn’t quite know how to make it without invoking some kind of satire。 This inevitably succeeds in making his opponents argument look silly， but whether that is a sufficient reason [see what I did there] to discount it is another thing entirely。That said， ‘Candide’ is the best kind of silly—it is the literary equivalent of Monty Python; it is often smart and sometimes stupid， and yet it is profoundly inspired in spite of this dichotomy。 I agree with Flaubert’s appraisal， that “the stamp of the master is in that laconic conclusion， as stupid as life itself。” Perhaps Candide is right， that in order to make anything of this life， “we must cultivate our garden。” So stop worrying， and live a little。 。。。more

Kelsey Carlson ，

Such a great read！ Witty， funny， so full of sarcasm and adventure。 I loved the overall message and the themes laced throughout this book and written so satirically I was giggling to myself throughout it。 Highly recommend。

Lucy ，

Voltaire had to have been on something when he wrote this

SuperGau ，

Diese Novelle ist eher mit Vorsicht zu "genießen": Nachdem dem Protagonist die jugendliche Idylle entrissen ist， gerät er in einen fortwährenden Strom von unglücklichen Schicksalsschlägen。 Unter anderem sind es Tod， Sklaverei， Vergewaltigung， Habgier， zynische Herrscher und zuletzt auch große Enttäuschung der Hoffnung， die er und seine Nahestehenden erfahren müssen。 Allerdings ist diese satirische Geschichte maßlos pessimistisch， vor allem， um den Optimismus a la Leibniz etwas entgegensetzen zu Diese Novelle ist eher mit Vorsicht zu "genießen": Nachdem dem Protagonist die jugendliche Idylle entrissen ist， gerät er in einen fortwährenden Strom von unglücklichen Schicksalsschlägen。 Unter anderem sind es Tod， Sklaverei， Vergewaltigung， Habgier， zynische Herrscher und zuletzt auch große Enttäuschung der Hoffnung， die er und seine Nahestehenden erfahren müssen。 Allerdings ist diese satirische Geschichte maßlos pessimistisch， vor allem， um den Optimismus a la Leibniz etwas entgegensetzen zu können， und soll deswegen extra nicht besonders realitätsnah wirken。 。。。more

Nora ，

3。5/5

Hannah ，

3。5/5

Yaniv Mintus ，

Satire at its finest， Voltaire manages to get a bunch of laughs while still writing an important philosophical tale。

Nadia Hina ，

My favorite line was about the people in the colonies had the right idea， if only they were not so zealous in party pride。 I can not recall if that is exactly correct， but I quite liked it nonetheless。 I liked the book as well！

Danada ，

no really my cup of tea and certainly not what I would call an "enjoyable" read， but the more I read about the book the more interesting it seems。 a re-read might make the book more interesting but I don't think it would ever be an "enjoyable" read for me。 Voltaire certainly seems like an interesting figure - I'm just not able to appreciate his humor as much as I should。 no really my cup of tea and certainly not what I would call an "enjoyable" read， but the more I read about the book the more interesting it seems。 a re-read might make the book more interesting but I don't think it would ever be an "enjoyable" read for me。 Voltaire certainly seems like an interesting figure - I'm just not able to appreciate his humor as much as I should。 。。。more

Amir Hosein PKZ ，

1400/3/10

Ethan ，

This book describes the life of Candide， yet puts a satirical and comedic twist on everything。 The entire book felt like reading through a comedic play， as the plot traveled like a roller coaster， with Candide moving from one conflict to the next without warning。 The continuity is purposefully inconsistent， with characters dying on screen， yet miraculously appear scenes later。 While the book is great to have a laugh at， there are times where the book could feel a bit slow placed。 I highly recomm This book describes the life of Candide， yet puts a satirical and comedic twist on everything。 The entire book felt like reading through a comedic play， as the plot traveled like a roller coaster， with Candide moving from one conflict to the next without warning。 The continuity is purposefully inconsistent， with characters dying on screen， yet miraculously appear scenes later。 While the book is great to have a laugh at， there are times where the book could feel a bit slow placed。 I highly recommend this book for those who avoid older novels， as those who enjoy comedy would very likely have a good time。 。。。more

Güçhan ，

Brilliantly written。 Funny。 Inspiring。

Gönül ，

Der Mathematiker und Philosoph Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz stellte die These auf， dass Gott nicht das vollkommene Wesen wäre， wenn er etwas Anderes， als die beste aller möglichen Welten für die Menschen erschaffen hätte。 Dies muss Voltaire - salopp ausgedrückt - derart auf den Senkel gegangen sein， dass er diese Ideologie mit „Candide oder der Optimismus“ 1759 kritisiert hat。 So ist das Buch eine Satireschrift gegen diese optimistische Weltanschauung。 Voltaire parodisiert und verspottet die Kirche Der Mathematiker und Philosoph Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz stellte die These auf， dass Gott nicht das vollkommene Wesen wäre， wenn er etwas Anderes， als die beste aller möglichen Welten für die Menschen erschaffen hätte。 Dies muss Voltaire - salopp ausgedrückt - derart auf den Senkel gegangen sein， dass er diese Ideologie mit „Candide oder der Optimismus“ 1759 kritisiert hat。 So ist das Buch eine Satireschrift gegen diese optimistische Weltanschauung。 Voltaire parodisiert und verspottet die Kirche und den Adel mit viel Sarkasmus und schwarzem Humor， er prangert Sklaverei und Krieg an und thematisiert die seinerzeit vorherrschenden Missstände。 Sein Protagonist ist der gutmütige， naive Candide， der die optimistische Weltanschauung seines Lehrers und Mentors Pangloss verinnerlicht hat， selbst dann noch als er aus dem schönen Westfalen （Ironie pur） vertrieben und auf seiner darauffolgenden langen Reise Zeuge von Krankheit， Krieg， Folter， Vergewaltigung und Sklaverei wird。 Zum Ende hin hat mich das Buch etwas gelangweilt。 Voltaire hätte hier auf einige Katastrophen auch verzichten können， weil eigentlich relativ früh auch dem allerletzten klar sein dürfte， was für ein schlechter Ort die Welt ist。 Trotzdem ist die Lektüre dieses Buches ein Genuss gewesen。 Zum einen， weil es aus historischer Sicht so viel zu entdecken gibt und zum anderen weil hier die großen philosophischen Fragen gestellt werden und dies zum Nachdenken und diskutieren anregt。 Voltaire gilt als Vordenker der Aufklärung und ein wichtiger Wegbereiter der französischen Revolution。 Zudem war ein bedeutender Gesellschafts- und Kirchenkritiker。 。。。more

Marc Bertin ，

I enjoyed what this book had to say quite a bit， but I'm not sure I'm a fan of Voltaire's sort of "choppy" manner of narrating。 I enjoyed what this book had to say quite a bit， but I'm not sure I'm a fan of Voltaire's sort of "choppy" manner of narrating。 。。。more

Aiden Benton ，

Very funny。 Good read。

Matthew Law ，

A journey with Candide around the world to chase his gal， Cunégonde， while encountering cultural and religions clashes and having debates on philosophies with travellers。"I Believe I might take more pleasure in opera， if they had not found a way to turn it into a repulsive monstrosity。 These wretched tragedies set to music - see them who will: where the scenes are contrived for no other purpose than to introduce， most incongruously， two or three songs designed to give some actress an opportunity A journey with Candide around the world to chase his gal， Cunégonde， while encountering cultural and religions clashes and having debates on philosophies with travellers。"I Believe I might take more pleasure in opera， if they had not found a way to turn it into a repulsive monstrosity。 These wretched tragedies set to music - see them who will: where the scenes are contrived for no other purpose than to introduce， most incongruously， two or three songs designed to give some actress an opportunity of showing the powers of her gullet。" - Ouch！ 🏃🌎👫 。。。more

Sara Salehi ，

Voltaire's humourous take on human suffering is rationally motivated by nature's inevitability of balancing compassion with tyranny。 Candide explores issues such as capitalism， racism， consumerism， and sexism in a divine manner that was surely ahead of its time。 Though this is not my favourite take on the aforementioned topics， I think it's safe to say that Candide's cleverness on cruelty vs。 desired justice is a significant take on the frail nature of humankind and its consequences that come up Voltaire's humourous take on human suffering is rationally motivated by nature's inevitability of balancing compassion with tyranny。 Candide explores issues such as capitalism， racism， consumerism， and sexism in a divine manner that was surely ahead of its time。 Though this is not my favourite take on the aforementioned topics， I think it's safe to say that Candide's cleverness on cruelty vs。 desired justice is a significant take on the frail nature of humankind and its consequences that come upon the next generations。 。。。more

Aida Mushell ，

I have never wanted Luis from Ant Man to narrate anything more than Candide （This won't make sense unless you have watched the Ant Man movies， so I'm attaching the link in case you have 0 idea what I'm talking about）。 The story is so wild and covers so many different plotlines， it's hard to keep up with what has already happened without keeping note of who has died， who has been tortured， who has been kidnapped， who has been swindled etc etc。 I highly recommend reading the original text and then I have never wanted Luis from Ant Man to narrate anything more than Candide （This won't make sense unless you have watched the Ant Man movies， so I'm attaching the link in case you have 0 idea what I'm talking about）。 The story is so wild and covers so many different plotlines， it's hard to keep up with what has already happened without keeping note of who has died， who has been tortured， who has been kidnapped， who has been swindled etc etc。 I highly recommend reading the original text and then following it up with a summary and analysis video off of YouTube because unless you are very familiar with satire and all of the elements Voltaire employs， they can skip right past you and the depth of the messages will not translate。 I was definitely able to latch onto most of it， but the secondary analysis did provide an extra perspective。The philosophical debates concerning optimism， ethics， and morality， along with all of the really horrible plot points could have been taken in a seriously dark direction to expose the true， dark， twisted nature of humanity if Voltaire vibed with that。 Instead， he keeps his audience engaged with the outlandish storytelling by the characters and overall satirization to communicate his message。I rate Candide 4 swag points out of 5。 The imagery was very swag， the satire was swaggy， and his ability to weave in so many stories was impressively swag （gave me Cloud Atlas vibes without the reincarnation bit）。https://www。youtube。com/watch？v=p-r3m。。。 。。。more

Alice Nunes ，

Read it for French Lit class。This was wildly racist and anti-semitic but oh well。The lecture about it was cool though， still， learning about it didn’t make me appreciate it more for what it did。

Tanaya Deshmukh ，

Too much absurd writing and stories will kill my brain。 Also， all characters in this book are apparently immortal。

Joao Baptista ，

O terramoto de Lisboa não foi apenas um evento geológico， foi também um terramoto filosófico que abalou de forma decisiva os sistemas que， procurando estabelecer uma compatibilidade entre a existência de mal no mundo e a existência de uma divindade omnipotente e perfeitamente boa， apontavam para uma reconciliação da humanidade com Deus， seu criador。 Sistemas esses que， argumentando que algum mal contingente era condição necessária para bens maiores， conduziam à aceitação de uma espécie de “econo O terramoto de Lisboa não foi apenas um evento geológico， foi também um terramoto filosófico que abalou de forma decisiva os sistemas que， procurando estabelecer uma compatibilidade entre a existência de mal no mundo e a existência de uma divindade omnipotente e perfeitamente boa， apontavam para uma reconciliação da humanidade com Deus， seu criador。 Sistemas esses que， argumentando que algum mal contingente era condição necessária para bens maiores， conduziam à aceitação de uma espécie de “economia do mal”。 Se tudo o que existe está de acordo com uma boa ordem e em vista do melhor， então necessariamente não existe algo como o mal real no mundo。 O mal que vemos é apenas o resultado de uma perspectiva subjectiva e parcelar， o resultado de uma insuficiência epistémica inerente à nossa condição。O modelo paradigmático deste tipo de teodiceias é o de Leibniz （Essais de Théodicée， 1710）， que assenta no conhecido princípio da razão suficiente， o qual， de forma sintética， pode ser assim resumido: tudo o que acontece ou é verdadeiro tem uma razão que o explica suficientemente。 A partir daqui e considerando os atributos divinos， Leibniz chega à conhecida conclusão de que vivemos no melhor dos mundos possíveis: se a existência deste mundo é contingente （na medida em que Deus poderia ter criado um mundo diferente， ou poderia mesmo não ter criado nenhum） mas se Deus decidiu criá-lo， então é necessariamente o melhor dos mundos possíveis， pois um Deus omnipotente， omnisciente e omnibenevolente não decidiria criar algo inferior a isso。 E， se assim é， então devemos aceitar o que nos parece um mal como algo que tem uma razão suficiente para existir， ainda que não consigamos perceber qual ela possa ser。 Neste quadro， estamos condenados a um optimismo irrefutável！Este modelo de teodiceia foi extremamente influente e marcou indelevelmente a filosofia da história， ainda antes de esse termo ter sido cunhado por Voltaire。 O mesmo Voltaire， guarda avançada do Iluminismo francês， que o parodiou de forma genial neste seu “Candide， ou l’Optimisme”， através das aventuras rocambolescas de Cândido que， apesar de todas as desgraças pelas quais passa e a que assiste， e às dúvidas que o assaltam， acaba por persistir em repetir o “mantra” do seu mentor， Dr。 Pangloss， de que tudo tem uma razão suficiente para acontecer e que， apesar de não parecer， «tout est bien»， «tout est au mieux»。Com todas as voltas e reviravoltas sofridas pelas personagens， Voltaire procura fundamentar uma atitude racional de aceitação do mundo， tal qual ele é。 E embora o peso do mal atormente a razão humana， o homem não pode renunciar a essa faculdade essencial。 A razão da existência do mal， a existir， está para além da nossa compreensão e o gizar de sistemas filosófico-metafísicos omnicompreensivos está condenado ao fracasso。 Mais do que explicar o mal de forma transcendente e integrá-lo num sistema filosófico coerente e compreensível， há que aceitar a sua presença no mundo e na vida dos homens， mas procurar， ao longo do tempo， prover à sua melhoria。 A resposta deve ser encontrada num princípio de acção， na necessidade de uma razão prática e volitiva， que vise mudar o mundo， recusando a aceitação impotente do estado de coisas， para o qual a única saída será o insuportável optimismo do cândido Cândido。 É essa， creio， a chave para interpretar a conversa final de Cândido com o turco que encontra em Constantinopla e que， de certo modo， corresponde ao “fundo moral” do conto。 Quando o turco diz a Cândido ter apenas um terreno de vinte arpentes que cultiva com os seus filhos， sendo que esse trabalho afasta de si três grandes males: o aborrecimento， o vício e a necessidade， o nosso herói conclui com a famosa expressão «Il faut cultiver notre jardin»。 E mesmo depois de Pangloss lhe recordar que todos os acontecimentos estão encadeados no melhor dos mundos possíveis e que foi por ter passado por todas as desgraças， começando com a expulsão a pontapé do castelo da Vestefália «à grands coups de pied dans le derrière»， passando pelo encarceramento pela Inquisição e pela viagem ao Eldorado， que nesse momento estava ali， em Constantinopla， casado com a sua （já não tão） amada Cunégonde， a comer compota de cidra e pistáchios， Cândido retorque que «Cela est bien dit （…）， mais il faut cultiver notre jardin»。 Impunha-se deixar de lado os problemas metafísicos abstractos e alienantes que caracterizavam a filosofia anterior ao século XVIII e adoptar uma filosofia de cariz prático， concreto， que permitisse actuar sobre o mundo， o nosso mundo， o nosso jardim， e não cuidar do jardim do Éden。 Jardim do Éden que era， afinal， o jardim do castelo do barão de Thunder-Ten-Tronckh， onde Cândido fora educado e de onde fora expulso。 Após essa queda – sempre a queda… –， resta-nos cultivar o nosso jardim， fazer dele um lugar melhor e renunciar às ilusões do paraíso。 Só cuidando do nosso jardim poderemos contrariar o mal e escapar ao fatum mahometanum， o “fatalismo à turca”。Apesar dos mais de 250 anos passados desde a publicação do Candide， esta é ainda hoje uma leitura extremamente aliciante， que nos faz reflectir mas também sorrir。 É um texto cheio de ritmo， de ironia， de vivacidade， que nos cativa permanentemente。Esta edição é particularmente interessante， pois é complementada por um alargado conjunto de textos de enquadramento histórico e literário， aos quais se juntam referências bibliográficas e mesmo tópicos para possíveis fichas de leitura， para quem queira trabalhar a obra em contexto escolar。 。。。more

Axel ，

Quick， full of philosophy and straight up crazy。 Loved it！ "All that is very well，" answered Candide， "but let us cultivate our garden。" 985/1000 Quick， full of philosophy and straight up crazy。 Loved it！ "All that is very well，" answered Candide， "but let us cultivate our garden。" 985/1000 。。。more

Katharina Gschwind ，

Voltaire can get it

Geetika ，

Life's journey with a beautiful ending to it。 It could be elongated to series of books if intended but for all I know that it took 3 days for Voltaire to write the book sums it all。 Life's journey with a beautiful ending to it。 It could be elongated to series of books if intended but for all I know that it took 3 days for Voltaire to write the book sums it all。 。。。more

Nicole Kim ，

Candide is great。 It's funny， it's critical， it's ridiculous: really all things you would expect if you've heard anything about the novel。 Voltaire addresses the prominent philosophy of optimism of the time with chapter after chapter of witty storytelling at the expense of our protagonist， Candide。 It's no wonder that it made such waves when it was published and is still considered a classic。However， I personally found the novel a bit tiresome。 Things just get worse and worse for Candide， until Candide is great。 It's funny， it's critical， it's ridiculous: really all things you would expect if you've heard anything about the novel。 Voltaire addresses the prominent philosophy of optimism of the time with chapter after chapter of witty storytelling at the expense of our protagonist， Candide。 It's no wonder that it made such waves when it was published and is still considered a classic。However， I personally found the novel a bit tiresome。 Things just get worse and worse for Candide， until something mildly positive happens and he latches onto it。 The joke is funny the first couple of times， but I found that the continuous repetition boring to read， even as the stories became more ridiculous。 That said， I think this is really just personal preference。 I think most people would derive pleasure from seeing Candide get dunked on throughout the novel。Moreover， the novel's treatment of certain cultures， races， and women would be considered disrespectful， at the least， by modern standards。 You can argue that Voltaire was a man of his time or that it is all in service of satire， but I think it's fair to at least put out a warning for it。 There are a group of people described as "apes" who are portrayed as Jesuit eating cannibals， and Voltaire uses women as unfaithful plot-points， and so on and so forth。 However， I don't deny that Voltaire's criticism of racism and religion in other portions of the novel， especially of the mutilated slave， are without its merits。 Just keep in mind that Candide is a mixed bag for these topics。Overall， I would recommend the novel。 It's a worthwhile read， even if it's just to criticize it。 。。。more

Thomas Shi ，

I liked this book; it was funny， it was philosophical， it makes you think about the world spinnign around you。 The book talks about some topics that might be unsightly to some of the more squeamish nerds （like myself）， depicting some very unfortunate scenarios in a hyperbolized world of suffering and contempt。 The thing about this book that you have to know going into it is that this book is Voltaire's attempt at foiling Leibniz's philosophy that "our world is the most perfect world。" That's why I liked this book; it was funny， it was philosophical， it makes you think about the world spinnign around you。 The book talks about some topics that might be unsightly to some of the more squeamish nerds （like myself）， depicting some very unfortunate scenarios in a hyperbolized world of suffering and contempt。 The thing about this book that you have to know going into it is that this book is Voltaire's attempt at foiling Leibniz's philosophy that "our world is the most perfect world。" That's why he shows the horrible things that he shows， to prove a point; And he does prove that point。 He shows the reader the world that they live in， the horrible things that humanity has done and the things that humanity wants。 The endless wants and needs of people in general is ultimately the downfall of Leibniz's philosophy， the world is imperfect because humanity is imperfect。 The most horrible things that ever happen are a byproduct of what people do and not the natural things that happen-- the worst earthquakes are nothing in the face of the atrocities of man。 All in all， I liked reading it， there are some pretty humorous ideas that are timeless， would reccomend。 。。。more

kylene ，

the chapter titles have the same energy as always sunny cold opens

Joyevgeniya ，

Karakter utamanya terlalu naif dan orang-orang disekitarnya terlalu jahat

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Candide, or Optimism

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Candide, or Optimism&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Candide, or Optimism&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0