"In this best of all possible worlds, everything is for the best."
With Dr. Pangloss' optimist philosophy in his mind, Candide grows up believing that the world he lives in is beautiful and that all things will work out for good. Even though he is flogged, punished, shipwrecked, alone, and miserable, he stubbornly clings to this belief. A novel written for the criticism of the Age of Enlightenment thinkers, Candide is one of the most celebrated works of French literature.
I never thought that the day would come when I would appreciate Voltaire. (All I previously knew about him is that the volt was named after him. Other than that, nadda.) Candide certainly made me like the French author.
This novel is the only one from our English 12 reading list that I've seriously enjoyed reading. Medea is okay but it's just too "unfeeling" for me. I haven't finished Inferno by Dante Alighieri because of the language. Candide, on the other hand, is a beautiful philosophical novel which truly entertains with its satirical tone and highly exaggerated story plot. The characters are odd and are surprisingly resurrected after such painful deaths. As Mam Concepcion pointed out, only the good guy (James the Anabaptist) died, and a man who did not believe in infant baptism at that. Friars are portrayed as liars, thieves, and vow breakers which tell us how much Voltaire hated organized religion. Also, the place where happiness can be found is a place that does not exist (Eldorado). It's really no wonder why Candide is such a famous work.
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