Candide

By Voltaire

Voltaire, was arguably the 18th century's greatest philosopher, and his most enduring work is his novella Candide; Or All for the Best. In it Voltaire parodies the philosophy of optimism championed by Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibnitz, which purports that since God created the world and God is perfect, then everything in the world is perfect. 

Voltaire's answer to what he deemed ludicrous philosophy was Candide: a fantastic picaresque tale that follows the ultra naive title character around the world on a hilarious journey. He goes about with his teacher Pangloss, who's bent on proving the tenets of optimism. But through the course of worldly events, pessimism eventually seems to be a more accurate view. When Candide and his friends are killed, they are magically brought back to life. First they're rich, then they're poor... and finally they wind up on a farm in Turkey. This short book is a fast paced, funny, and delightful read.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Sheba Blake Publishing
• Release date: May 18, 2015
• ISBN: 9781304100542

Voltaire

Born in Paris in 1694, François-Marie Arouet, who would later go by the nom-de-plume Voltaire, was a French Enlightenment philosopher, poet, historian, and author. Voltaire’s writing was often controversial, and in 1715 he was sent into his first exile in Tulle after a writing a satirical piece about the Duke of Orleans, the Regent of France. It was during this time that he produced his first major work, the play Oedipus. Although allowed to return to Paris a year later, Voltaire’s writing continued to land him in trouble. He was jailed in the Bastille two more times and was exiled from Paris for a good portion of his life. Throughout these troubles, Voltaire continued to write, producing works of poetry, a number of plays, and some historical and political texts. His most famous work is the satirical novel Candide, and many of his plays, including Oedipus and Socrates, are still performed today. Voltaire died in 1778.

Reviews for Candide

[enmarch · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Enjoyed it.