Shattered by the Lisbon earthquake that killed tens of thousands in 1755, Voltaire loses faith in higher order and produces Candide, his furious manifesto declaring that there is no justice in the world, no peace for the good nor punishment for the wicked. "This is the best of all possible worlds," Dr. Pangloss blithely declares while people get raped and disemboweled behind him. The plot is dizzying, hectic and horrifying. "We must cultivate our garden," says Candide finally, exhausted: it's a retreat. Good Lord, I quit. Find me a corner I can control. This is one of my favorite books, in my top five from the 1700s. It's appalling.

كانديد أو التفاؤل واحدة من أشهر روايات الأديب الفرنسي فولتير..

من خلال كانديد الرجل الساذج بياخدنا فولتير في رواية تعتبر فلسفية يصور فيها العالم قاسي جداً و كل البشر أشرار ،لصوص و قتلة وينتقد فيها رجال الدين،الفلاسفة والأنظمة السياسية...

الرواية فيها ذكر لأحداث تاريخية وأفكار كانت موجودة في هذا العصر ..الصراحة معنديش أي خلفية عنها وبالتالي مقدرتش أفهم حاجات كتير...
الترجمة قفلتني من الكتاب تماماً..قرأتها بترجمة عادل زعيتر و هي من وجهة نظري ترجمة عقيمة و غير مناسبة لهذا الزمن...

يقال إنها رواية ساخرة ومع ذلك أنا لم أبتسم حتي في أي جزء منها!
مقدرتش أحبها..
i felt it very old and too classic..
it is not my cup of tea at all!

Comedy of disasters with a happy ending devoted to testing to destruction the notion that we live in the best of all possible worlds. In order to do this the characters are repeatedly killed, injured and disadvantaged. In a fine move they take turns narrating their disasters to each other, until the old woman who was the illegitimate daughter of the a Pope managed to out do everyone with her story which culminates (debatably) in having one of her buttock cheeks eaten as an act of (relative) mercy.

Great fun.

This was so over the top with calamities and dramatics. Voltaire shines a light on human nature and all its fallacies in this satire. At first it was enjoyable and funny but near the end I grew annoyed.

This is quite a remarkable book – a satirical attack on the notion that we live in the best of all possible worlds and that therefore all that happens in such a world invariably happens for the best. Voltaire is supposed to have written the whole thing in barely three days – a rather productive half-week.

What I found particularly interesting here was the discussion of war – how the horrors of war are presented in such an off-hand way and almost invariably the utter inhumanity of what is described (rape and even eating half of someone’s bum) is just chalked up to ‘the way things are’. The question of free will, human agency and responsibility for our actions – something that the notion of our living in the best of all possible worlds does much to undermine – is never far from the surface here, but invariably it remains just under the surface. This is a ‘show, don’t tell’ book – even if the showing is heavy-handed in the extreme. It would take a particularly committed optimist to go through what the characters in this book do and come out the other end still thinking the world is beyond any possibility of improvement.

What I particularly liked, though, was the very end and the garden that is being tended. It is through Candide’s labours to create this garden that he finally finds some sense of human dignity, stability and even a kind of happiness. The book is otherwise the odyssey of a fool, but this final acceptance of life as struggle and a kind of stoic acceptance of the rewards that come from labour is quite a lovely thing, really. Even before I got to the end I kept thinking the whole way through the book about how different Eastern and Western notions of these things are and have been. When the Buddha was first confronted by the world outside his idyllic palace he realised life was suffering. It is odd that when we in the West are confronted with much the same vision of the world around us we all too often excuse that suffering as being necessary for the greater good. This little book by Voltaire shows such inhumanity isn’t a necessary assumption of the Western tradition, that sometimes even we can be shocked by the horrors we inflict on others and even humbled by suffering.

This is my first novel by Voltaire, and it will not be my last. How lucky to have a trifecta of satirists and piss-takers on hand now, just waiting for me to pluck out a story and have a ball. The other two being Gogol and Kafka, of course. This piece was written by Voltaire in 1759.

Candide was an impressionable young man, he was a very gullible, kind hearted young man. He was influenced by his tutor, a man called Pangloss. This man’s mantra was this world we live in is “the best of all possible worlds”. Or as is said down under “She’ll be right mate.” Everything will work out in the end, for the good. This had a massive impact in the impressionable Candide.

Pangloss was a professor of metaphysicotheologico-cosmolo-nigology. He and Candide were living in a castle in a place called Whestphalia owned by the Baron of Thunder-ten-Tronckh. You can imagine, as soon as I read these words, I knew I was in for one helluva ride.



Candide caught in the act of trying to seduce the gorgeous Cunegonde

Candide falls for the scrumptious Cunegonde, the Baron’s daughter. As soon as the Baron discovers this – Candide is kicked out of the castle and what follows next is a journey across the globe whereby he encounters many dreadful people and situations. The horrors he experiences, sees, or hears from other people include, rape, murder, enslavement, thieving, whipping, the inquisition, earthquakes, monkeys chasing naked young maidens and biting their buttocks, burning at the stake – to name only a handful.

The villainy of mankind presented itself before his imagination in all its deformity, and his mind was filled with gloomy ideas

Candide started to have serious doubts about Pangloss’s overly optimistic philosophy of life. In fact, Voltaire spends considerable time dismantling the notion of supreme optimism here, and he does an incredibly good job. He also explores the idea of happiness, and fulfilment – and his view on how to achieve that.

This book is a lovely amalgam of philosophy, history and fun – my review has only scratched the surface.

5 Stars

بعد أن يطوف كانديد بلاد العالم ويرى أفعال وشرور البشر يتأكد أنه لا شيء يسير على ما يُرام
نص ساخر يحكي فيه فولتير أحداث ومفارقات مضحكة ليتساءل عن وجود الانسان ونظرته للحياة
ويسخر من التفاؤل وينتقد الأحوال السياسية والدينية والفكرية السائدة

Voltaire (1694-1778) invited controversy; 18th century Europe nurtured controversy. By 1727 when Sir Isaac Newton died, philosophy was moving toward secular analysis. When Candide was published in 1759 France was still a Catholic monarchy but only a scant three decades away from revolution.

Voltaire's iconoclastic wit shaped the secular outlook of the Enlightenment. In Candide he skewered the tortured abstractions of Leibniz with a blunt assessment of undeniable social realities. Yet, Candide is no historical relic. Voltaire's pointed satire and disdain for authority is not only entertaining, even in an English translation, but a refreshing antidote to magical thinking. As Candide is finally forced to admit: “I must at last renounce my optimism....[I]t is the madness of maintaining that everything is right when it is wrong.” (p.67)

God being perfect created the best of all possible worlds. Apparent evils are elements necessary to an ultimate and unknown greater good. “'It is demonstrable...that things cannot be otherwise than as they are; for all being created for an end, all is necessarily for the best end. Observe that the nose has been formed to bear spectacles – thus we have spectacles. Legs are visibly designed for stockings – and we have stockings” intones Dr. Pangloss (a caricature of Leibniz). (p.8) A naive Candide imbibes this sage's wisdom. It will take quite a long train of misfortunes for Candide to re-think (or think?) this position.

Amorous impulsivity causes both Candide and Dr. Pangloss to be expelled from Baron Thunder-ten-Tronckh's castle. Warfare and a devastating earthquake are only a few of the misfortunes they encounter in the outside world – all part of the best of all possible worlds!

Voltaire eloquently observes how humans exercise free will. During the Lisbon earthquake “thirty thousand inhabitants of all ages and sexes were crushed under the ruins. The sailor, whistling and swearing, said there was booty to be gained here.” (p.21) When Candide questions a companion, Martin, about the nature of man, Martin retorts: “Do you believe hawks have always eaten pigeons when they have found them?” (p.76)

It is easy to sneer at Candide’s credulity. However, is it any worse than the townspeople of Lisbon approving a beautiful Auto-da-fe to prevent any further earthquake? The source of Voltaire’s humor is his skill in separating his narrative voice from the voices of his characters. He does not need to mock the burning. It’s stupidity and resulting horror are there for all to see. When a grey friar robs Cunegonde (Candide’s romantic interest) leaving them and an old servant woman unable to pay for an escape, Candide’s reaction can only be described as astonishing: “’Alas!...dear Pangloss has often demonstrated to me that the goods of this world are common to all men, and that each has an equal right to them. But according to these principles the Grey Friar ought to have left us enough to carry us through our journey.’” (p.33)

Voltaire understands his readers. Throughout this book we have seen nothing but an evasion of accountability. Leibniz’s “best of all possible worlds” bromide encourages complicity with this state of affairs. That accounts for the singular satisfaction gained as we watch Candide finally deal with Cunegonde’s brother: “they had the double pleasure of entrapping a Jesuit, and punishing the pride of a German baron.” (p.112) The characters in this book are cartoonish but certainly not unrecognizable.

This was the selection of our local book club.

NOTES:
An essay on the novel: https://www.thejakartapost.com/life/2...

A review that affirms the book’s contemporary relevance: https://theconversation.com/guide-to-...

11/17/2024: I just came across another essay of interest> Candide, an essay in Velocity, Italo Calvino, The Uses of Literature, trans. Patrick Creagh, NY: Harcourt, Brace, Jovanovich, 1980, p.175-181.

Voltaire recurre a una ironía mordaz y a un insólito humor para alzar una despiadada crítica al optimismo metafísico de Leibniz. Por medio de una sátira de lenguaje ligero y sucesos descabellados, exagerados e inverosímiles, el autor despedaza el pensamiento propuesto por el filósofo para inclinarse por una visión del mundo que resalta toda la oscuridad y podredumbre de éste.

De la mano de Candido, un joven ingenuo y amable que se aferra al optimismo que le inculcó Pangloss, su mentor y referente, vamos atestiguando una serie de eventos que son en un inicio desafortunados pero tornan rápidamente en trágicos. Alejado de Cunegunda, la mujer a la que ama, y obsesionado con la inquebrantable ilusión de volver a su lado, se embarca en un viaje inusitado a través del mundo que lo enfrenta a las más insospechadas crueldades y desventuras. En compañía de personajes tan golpeados por la vida como él, el libro casi se convierte en una competencia de quién tiene el pasado más brutal y más absurdo.

Si bien el humor prima a lo largo de toda la obra, carácter imprescindible para hacer de ella una sátira, Voltaire utiliza este recurso para hacer una crítica nada ligera a la filósofa de la época, a la hipocresía de la iglesia, la corrupción de las instituciones políticas, la crueldad inherente del ser humano y demás aspectos negativos del mundo que conoció y que, pese a los siglos de por medio, no acaba de diferir demasiado del nuestro.

This picaresque, satiric and philosophical novel (or novella) which is both a comedy and a tragedy is a very enjoyable read. I did not expect it but I laughed out loud at some points. And I felt sorry for the main characters at others.
Although Voltaire makes a mock of a phylosophic theory of "optimism" and in spite of all the suffering people have to endure in this life ("(...)but I must confess, when I cast my eye on this globe, or rather globule, I cannot help thinking that God has abandoned it to some malignant being. I always except El Dorado. I scarce ever knew a city that did not wish the destruction of its neighboring city; nor a family that did not desire to exterminate some other family. The poor in all parts of the world bear an inveterate hatred to the rich, even while they creep and cringe to them; and the rich treat the poor like sheep, whose wool and flesh they barter for money; a million of regimented assassins traverse Europe from one end to the other, to get their bread by regular depredation and murder, because it is the most gentlemanlike profession. Even in those cities which seem to enjoy the blessings of peace, and where the arts flourish, the inhabitants are devoured with envy, care, and inquietudes, which are greater plagues than any experienced in a town besieged. Private chagrins are still more dreadful than public calamities. In a word,” concluded the philosopher"...)

is an optimistic story.

On love for life:

"I have been a hundred times upon the point of killing myself, but still I was fond of life. This ridiculous weakness is, perhaps, one of the dangerous principles implanted in our nature. For what can be more absurd than to persist in carrying a burden of which we wish to be eased? to detest, and yet to strive to preserve our existence? In a word, to caress the serpent that devours us, and hug him close to our bosoms till he has gnawed into our hearts?"

And, the most important moral of the story is that regardless of what is going on around us, "we must take care of our garden.” and do our best in what is needed to be done to make this world a better place to live in.

ولتر به شكل بسيار هنرمندانه و زيبايي با روايتي مدرن و زيبا كه آغشته به اندكي طنز هست ، همه چيز رو زير بار نقد ميگيره ، سياست ، اقتصاد، دين، تقدير و ....

و در اين امر بسيار موفق عمل ميكنه

" از تمام مسافران اين كشتي بخواهيد تا داستان زندگيشان را برايتان تعريف كنند ، اگر حتي يك نفر را پيدا كرديد كه به روز تولدش نفرين نفرستاده باشد ، يا به خود نگفته باشد كه بدبخت ترين آدم است ، مرا با سر به دريا بيندازيد. "

بارها برامون پيش اومده زماني كه داريم از بدبختيامون با يه نفر حرف ميزنيم به جاي دلداري تا بهمون ثابت نكنه از ما بدبخت تره بيخيال نميشه، بعد از خوندن كانديد به اين نتيجه رسيدم كه انگار اين قضيه ريشه ها در تاريخ داره.

" كاكامبو گفت: خوشبيني چيست؟
كانديد گفت : ميل مفرط به گفتن اينكه همه چيز خوب است ، درست موقعي كه خود گوينده در برزخ است"

کاندید گفت:«این مرد چه نابغه بزرگی باید باشد؛ هیچ چیز نمی‌تواند راضی‌اش کند. حالا موافقی که او خوشبخت‌ترین مرد روی زمین است؟ چراکه از هرچه دارد برتر است».
-مارتین گفت:«یعنی ندیدی که از هرچه دارد متنفر است؟افلاطون مدت‌ها پیش گفته که بهترین معده‌‌ها آن‌هایی نیستند که همه‌ی غذاها را پس می‌زنند»
+« ولی مگر رضایت در انتقاد از همه چیز نیست؟در دیدن زشتی‌هایی که دیگران فکر می‌کند زیباییست؟»
-« یعنی رضایت در نداشتن رضایت؟»

داستان جالبی بود. شخصیت اصلی داستان (کاندید)، تحت تربیت استاد خوش بین‌ش، پانگلوس، بزرگ شده است که شعار اصلی زندگی وی، این است که هر چیزی در زندگی با هدف مشخصی رخ می‌دهد، بنابراین هر اتفاقی که می‌افتد در نهایت بهترین اتفاقی است که ممکن بود رخ دهد. کاندید یک ایدئالیست است که در طول داستان هیچ‌گاه دست از آرزوی رسیدن به کونگاند برنمی‌دارد با وجود اینکه کونگاند را بیشتر به عنوان یک ایده آل و سمبل عشق دوست دارد تا خود شخص او. کاندید در طول داستان از طبقات اجتماعی بالا به وضعیت‌های اجتماعی پایین‌تری جا به جا می‌شود و فاجعه پشت فاجعه برایش رخ می‌دهد با این حال سعی دارد که فلسفه استاد خوش بینِ عزیز خود یعنی پانگلوس را حفظ نماید و اتفاقات را به نوعی مثبت تفسیر نماید. با این حال دوست وی، مارتین، شخصی بسیار بدبین است و خوش بینی بیش از حد کاندید را به تعادل می‌رساند.
یکی از نکات جالب داستان این بود که هریک از شخصیت‌ها خود را بدبخت‌ترین شخص روی زمین حس می‌کرد و شخصیت‌ها دنبال کسی بودند که خود را اندکی خوشبخت حس کند.