"كل شى على خير مايرام "
هل كل شئ على أحسن مايكون مهما حدث ؟
يأخذنا كنديد ف رحلة حياته بطريقة ذكرتنى كثيرا باسلوب الف ليلة وليلة فنمر بكل مايمر به كانديد و احيانا حكايات بائسة لاشخاص اخرين يقابلهم
الكثير من المشاكل والعقبات تتخللها قليل من المواقف الجيدة لصالح كانديد لكن الاغلبية بالطبع ضده فهل سيظل على تفائله وتمسكه بمبدا معلمه ان كل شئ على خير مايرام وعلى احسن مايكون ام سيفقده فى الطريق !

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Our protagonist Candide is a young, hopeful follower of his mentor Pangloss's optimistic philosophy of life in which pure nature is good and all that happens in life, happens for the best.

Even though the narrative takes Candide through trials and tribulations in his lifelong journey across the oceans and seas, from East to West and back, he maintains his hopefulness, buoyancy, and innocence. However, towards the end of this satirical novella, he comes to a realization.

Voltaire's (1694-1778) Candide (1759) questions Leibniz's philosophy, suggests reading the Stoics, traveling, and most of all "cultivating one's own garden".

All is for the best in the best of all possible worlds…
And following this sententious wisdom Candide embarks on the quest of his life.

Never was anything so gallant, so well accoutred, so brilliant, and so finely disposed as the two armies. The trumpets, fifes, hautboys, drums, and cannon made such harmony as never was heard in Hell itself.

His adventures begin with war… Wars bring glory to those who are on the winning side… Especially to the monarchs and their generals… As for the rest, they may rest in peace.
But Candide never frets… He moves on…

“All this was indispensably necessary,” replied the one–eyed doctor, “for private misfortunes are public benefits; so that the more private misfortunes there are, the greater is the general good.”

So Candide never worries… He moves on… He bravely proceeds from bad to worse… And his followers, those who had managed to survive, follow…

“The Moors presently stripped us as bare as ever we were born. My mother, my maids of honor, and myself, were served all in the same manner. It is amazing how quick these gentry are at undressing people. But what surprised me most was, that they made a rude sort of surgical examination of parts of the body which are sacred to the functions of nature. I thought it a very strange kind of ceremony; for thus we are generally apt to judge of things when we have not seen the world. I afterwards learned that it was to discover if we had any diamonds concealed. This practice had been established since time immemorial among those civilized nations that scour the seas. I was informed that the religious Knights of Malta never fail to make this search whenever any Moors of either sex fall into their hands. It is a part of the law of nations, from which they never deviate.”

It looks like the law of nations didn’t change much since then.
Never trust a philosopher… Optimism is a loss of orientation in the surrounding reality…

n  Consider me dramatically and unequivocally unimpressed. n

I did not laugh once. I do not engage with stories that are simple allegory to represent a philosophy. I want a little bit of substance. I want some storytelling involved.

Call it a product of its time if you like, but laziness is the word that comes to mind.

I won't waste anymore words here.

Nada de novo ou sequer interessante terei a dizer sobre este livro.

É uma pura delícia de cabo a rabo. As belíssimas notas da tradução ajudam a compreender o génio de Voltaire, registando-se com particular gosto na memória da leitura os ajustes de contas pela via da zurzidela inserida na narrativa. Mangar com um adversário é giro. Mangar com um adversário durante séculos de reedições é o tipo de imortalidade que me diverte.

Surprisingly Funny

Candide was written in 1759 so I wasn’t expecting it to be laugh out loud funny, but it was.

Have you ever listened to someone who was so dead set in their ideals, but when you actually heard their logic for their ideals that it made absolutely no sense? That is this book.

Candide falls in love with a Lady Cunegonde, and for this he is unceremoniously thrown out of the castle. In his journeys, he meets many other people, and he befriends a philosopher, Pangloss, who says that everything is always for the best. However, how is everything for the best when they are suffering so?

For this read, I practiced immersion reading (following along in the text while listening to the audiobook), and I was able to do so for free by using the Libby app. Candide is a relatively short book. The audiobook is around 4 hours at a 1.0X speed.

Moreover, Candide is a bit spooky when read in today’s political and social climate. For example, there is the issue of global warming. Despite scientific proof, there are still some people who cling to the idea that it doesn’t exist. In the United States, most companies no longer offer a pension and starting in 2034, the Social Security Fund will run out of money. Yet if someone is poor, society tries to blame the individual despite society’s broken system.

At one point, Candide has many sheep laden with treasure. He appears to be set for life. However, life slowly erodes his sheep. Doesn’t that sound like the runaway inflation of today or perhaps the crushing mound of student loan debt?

If you enjoy 1984, this book is perfect for you. Also, I think that this is the good version of Catch-22.

Before I sign off, there are a few points that I did not appreciate in Candide. As mentioned above, Voltaire penned this in 1759 so not all parts have aged well.

Overall, a very interesting short story, well worth a read.

2025 Reading Schedule
JantA Town Like Alice
FebtBirdsong
MartCaptain Corelli's Mandolin - Louis De Berniere
AprtWar and Peace
MaytThe Woman in White
JuntAtonement
JultThe Shadow of the Wind
AugtJude the Obscure
SeptUlysses
OcttVanity Fair
NovtA Fine Balance
DectGerminal

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Re-read for my Open University studies, 2023.

Voltaire's novel introduces the reader to Candide, a wide-eyed, calm and slightly bland young gentleman who resides at Castle Westphalia and who believes in the philosophy that "everything in the world is for the best." One of the first scenes is filled with two emotional opposites for Candide who first gets to kiss his love, Cunegonde behind a screen, only to then be kicked out of the castle, literally, by the Baron of Thunder-ten-Tronckh.

Here then begins Candide's incredible, fantastical adventure which takes him all over the globe with his mind always believing in the viewpoint that "the folly of optimism". Moving on from being a soldier in the Bulgarian army to being shipwrecked, being involved with the aftermath of an earthquake to being robbed and swindled more times than seems fair - our hero has a lot of bad luck. One of the overarching issues of this narrative is to present that it isn't just Candide that bad things happen to and that the world is just pretty damn horrible. Tragic things happen to all our main characters including philosopher Dr. Pangloss and a nice old lady who saved Candide from certain death. The tale is humorously and satirically presented in short, sharp chapters by Voltaire. Some descriptions of doom and degradation are presented in a comic fashion because if they were not they might be too unspeakably horrid and upsetting to read, and therefore would not keep us readers interested in, well, reading further. The heartlessness, negativity, and cold-heartedness of humans is a frequent aura and undertone throughout. The novel features all sorts of nastiness such as rape, murder, prostitution, and slavery among other diabolical nastiness and nonsense. The only part of this book where Voltaire excludes any use of humour is when he talks about slavery after we meet a mutilated man. This is quite poignant when the author has presented all the mephistophelian activities previously that slavery doesn't deserve any humour - arguably making this the crime Voltaire begrudges the most in this world. There are many heart-rending, pitiful and distressing moments throughout, sprinkled with humour and comedy.

Candide and his valet Cacambo, after nearly being eaten by indigenous people; arrive in Voltaire's Utopia El Dorado. This was my favourite section of the book as this unobtainable existence is a polar opposite of everything that the two young men have faced so far. Gold and diamonds litter the streets as pebbles, there is no law, scientific advancements that make the Western world jealous, no prisons and is opposite to the popular viewpoint of the story that "all is misery and illusion". The main plot progression throughout the book is Candide trying to find his love Cunegonde as he wishes to marry her which is his reason for (stupidly in my opinion) leaving this wonderful place.

The whole cast is likable. Some of the times they meet up with friends spontaneously all over the world is amazingly far fetched. Two of the main characters are previously mentioned optimistic philosopher Dr. Pangloss and ultimately pessimistic scholar and travel companion of Candide's, Martin. The juxtaposition here is very interesting. It is very "black and white" for these extreme viewpoints. There is no compromise or middle ground. A great amount of philosophy is discussed throughout the book in conversations usually prompted by Candide who wants answers to how the world works. It may very well be that he changes his optimistic opinion throughout the narrative.

I probably shouldn't like a book with so much negativity but it is incredibly written. It reminded me of Verne's - Around The World In Eighty Days. Both being high octane adventures transversing across the globe but with Candide's undertones being a lot more macabre.

My favourite scene was when Candide discusses classic literature such as Homer, Virgil, and Horace to a King who dislikes everything. "You will agree that this is the happiest of mortals, for he is above everything he possesses." Negativity and hatred is the main theme throughout the whole novel.

The problem with reviewing classic literature like this is that many greater wordsmiths over previous centuries have written more poetic and moving opinions. I'm an ant looking up at these amazing intellects and just trying to give my thoughts. I struggle to write about legendary books however I enjoyed the book so much I had to write down a few blurbs of thoughts even though the quality will be lacking when compared to previous critics. If you haven't already, this book is very well worth reading!

James Tivendale.

Γνήσιο τέκνο του Διαφωτισμού, ο «βασιλιάς» Βολταίρος, στο Καντίντ μας χαρίζει όλα αυτά που ένα "φωτισμένο" μυαλό της εποχής, πρέπει να μας χαρίσει.
Το Καντίντ είναι λοιπόν ένα φιλοσοφικό παραμύθι, με την προσπάθεια του δημιουργού του να αφυπνίσει το αναγνωστικό κοινό του διάχυτη.
Ο αγνός του ήρωας, ο υπεραισιόδοξος Καντιντ γίνεται έρμαιο των καταστάσεων, χωρίς όμως να χάνει ποτέ την ελπίδα του, φανερή προσπάθεια του Βολταίρου να στιγματίσει την μακάρια αισιοδοξία των σύγχρονων του.
Ο πόλεμος, ο φανατισμός και η αγριότητα των ανθρώπων σε ένα κείμενο γεμάτο με το χιούμορ και την χαρακτηριστική βολταιρική ειρωνεία.
Η αφήγηση φαίνεται αφελής (προφανώς από επιλογή), η γλώσσα απλοϊκή και οι περιπέτειες του ήρωα τόσο εξωπραγματικές σε ταχύτητα, που θυμίζουν λαϊκό παραμύθι. Διαβάζεται γρήγορα και πολύ ευχάριστα. Μου άρεσε.

کاندید جوان ساده دلی (در بعضی جاها احمق) هست که در راه عشق و علاقه بلا ها و اتفاقات زیادی رو تجربه میکنه! داستان در عین ساده بودن یک زیر لایه فلسفی داره که به فلسفه خوش باوری نیتس رو نقد میکنه (موضوعاتی مثل: همه چیز در دنیا خوبه، هیچ چیز در دنیا خوب نیست و یا همه آدم ها مشکلاتی دارند و در کل میشه گفت فلسفه خوشبختی)
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در مورد کتاب تعریف های زیادی شنیده بودم اما در حدی که انتظار داشتم جذبم نکرد، هم به خاطر شخصیت کاندید (که خیلی جاها حرص آدمو در میاورد) و هم به دلیل ترجمه! مترجم سعی کرده کتاب رو به شیوه کلاسیک ترجمه کنه، ولی در این زمینه زیاد موفق نبوده، جمله ها در خیلی جاها درهم و بی معنی هستن، متن اصلا یک دست نیست و در بعضی قسمت ها از کلمات امروزی استفاده شده که هیچ هماهنگی با متن کلاسیک نداره!

Splendid, very well written, and quite funny story.

"Do you believe," said Candide, "that men have always massacred each other as they do to-day, that they have always been liars, cheats, traitors, ingrates, brigands, idiots, thieves, scoundrels, gluttons, drunkards, misers, envious, ambitious, bloody-minded, calumniators, debauchees, fanatics, hypocrites, and fools?"

"Do you believe," said Martin, "that hawks have always eaten pigeons when they have found them?"

"Yes, without doubt," said Candide.

"Well, then," said Martin, "if hawks have always had the same character why should you imagine that men may have changed theirs?"

Candide, or Optimism, novel published in 1759, tells us the story of Candide, a friendly, optimistic, young man who grew up and lived in a castle, in the city of Westphalia. Suddenly, one day he is expelled from his home, and therefore he decides to set out on a long voyage right away, where he will live new experiences and make new decisions which will take him to other nations. At the same time, he will realize that the world is not how his mentor, Profesor Pangloss, had said it would be.

I don’t know how to express how much I enjoyed reading this novella. Firstly, the fact that the narrative is quite meaningful and thought-provoking, makes me appreciate much more the characters and the story itself. Each time Candide moved to his next destination, I was eager to see what it was going to happen there. Besides, I had this wrong assumption that this novel would be dense or difficult to read; however, it was nothing like that, instead, it was rather enjoyable and captivating.

It’s fair to say that this is one of those books at which you can’t help but underline a lot of quotes – trust me, many of them. Now, even though I didn’t know anything about Leibnizian optimism, a philosophical theory which tries to justify the apparent imperfections of the world by claiming that it is optimal among all posible worlds, Voltaire explains that idea the best and clearest way possible throughout the whole trip made by Candide, while he (Candide) was experiencing and being witness to great hardship in the world – in other words, this novella is basically a satire.

In addition, I have to admit that Candide, or Optimism reminded me of one of my favorite readings in this year, Gulliver’s Travels, since both Candide and Gulliver are characters who kicked off a long journey, and consequently visited so many places throughout different countries.
While Gulliver is traveling towards fictional lands by chance, Candide is embarking on his own way to real and accurate cities from all over the world – well, three continents, but that’s enough, I guess.
Just for the record, both Gulliver and Candide made me laugh quite a bit, which is not unusual since both novels are satires. For instance, Candide’s dialogues turned out truly funny many times, as though he was quite innocent and was looking at a different world to that he had in mind, which makes sense since somehow our protagonist couldn’t help thinking of a happy world, believes based upon what he had learned before.

Lastly, needless to say that this reading has become one of my favorite books so far, and of course, I highly recommend this novel to all of you.

Favorite quotes:

[1] "...it was love; love, the comfort of the human species, the preserver of the universe, the soul of all sensible beings, love, tender love."

[2] "I have had experience, I know the world; therefore I advise you to divert yourself, and prevail upon each passenger to tell his story; and if there be one of them all, that has not cursed his life many a time, that has not frequently looked upon himself as the unhappiest of mortals, I give you leave to throw me headforemost into the sea."

[3] "What is this optimism?" said Cacambo. "Alas!" said Candide, "it is the madness of maintaining that everything is right when it is wrong."

[4] "...when you had been hanged, dissected, whipped, and were tugging at the oar, did you always think that everything happens for the best?"

[5] "Let us work," said Martin, "without disputing; it is the only way to render life tolerable."

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‎دوستانِ گرانقدر، کاندید داستانی هنرمندانه از «ولترِ بزرگ» یکی از خردمند ترین انسانهایِ تاریخ است.. داستان در 30 فصل نوشته شده است و به صورتی تند و سریع روایت میشود و همچون یک فیلم از جلویِ نظرِ شما عبور میکند.. در دلِ داستان، علاوه بر ستمها و دردهایی که بر شخصیتِ سادهٔ داستان یعنی «کاندید» وارد میشود، ولتر آموزه هایِ فلسفی، اجتماعی و خردمندانه اش را نیز به خواننده ارائه میدهد..این مردِ خردمند، در این داستان، با نوشتار و زبانی طنزگونه نبردی بر علیه خوشبینی به راه می اندازد. علاوه بر این، ولتر با هنرِ هرچه تمامتر، نه تنها دین و مذهب را به سخره میگیرد، بلکه با تعریف کردنِ داستانهایِ مختلف از سرزمینهایِ گوناگون در دلِ این داستان، نشان میدهد که آدمیزاد چه حیوانِ پست و وحشی و بی رحمی است و چه جنایتهایی از او ساخته است و زمین تا آسمان تفاوت است میانِ انسان بودن و آدم بودن.. هرچه میبینیم درد و رنج است و هر کسی از دیدگاهش دردکشیده ترین انسانِ رویِ زمین است.. و سؤال اینجاست که چرا باید حیوانی به نامِ بشر یا همان آدمیزاد در طبیعت به وجود می آمد!؟ جالب و البته دور از انتظار نیست که در این داستان، تنها جا و مکانی که انسانهایش راستگو بودند، جرم و جنایت وجود نداشت و همه با یکدیگر مهربان بودند و در خوشی زندگی میگذراندند، سرزمینِ افسانه ای الدورادو در پرو بود، که تنها جایی در این داستان بود که در میانِ سرزمینهایِ گوناگون، خبری از ادیانِ موهومِ سامی همچون مسیحیت و یهودیت و اسلام نبود..تنها سرزمینی بود که قدمِ پست و نحسِ روحانیونِ مسیحی و یهودی و مسلمان به آنجا باز نشده بود و با دین و مذهبشان همچون طاعون و بیماری، آن سرزمین را ویران نکرده بودند و مردمانِ آن دیار آزادانه فلسفه و ریاضی و فیزیک و نجوم را مطالعه میکردند و موهومات و خزعبلاتِ دینی، واردِ دانش و فلسفهٔ آنها نشده بود
‎در زیر چکیده ای از این داستان را بدونِ لو دادنِ سرانجامِ آن، برایِ شما عزیزان مینویسم و در پایانِ ریویو، جملاتی را نیز از دلِ کتاب برایتان خواهم نوشت
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‎کاندید جوانی ساده دل و راستگو است که در قلعه ای در آلمان زندگی میکند و گویا خواهر زادهٔ خان (بارون) است
‎دخترِ خان، دوشیزه کانگاند به همراهِ برادر و پانگلوس به اصطلاح آموزگارِ خانواده که مسائل دینی و مذهبی را آموزش میدهد از دیگر شخصیتهایِ داستان هستند .. پانگلوس که کاندید او را فیلسوف میداند، آنقدر بیخرد است که تمامِ پیش آمدها را از تقدیرِ الهی میداند و میگوید هرچیزی اتفاق افتد خواستِ خداست و نباید با آن مقابله کرد و همه چیز به خودیِ خود، خوب است
‎کاندید که کانگاند را دوست دارد، با او تنها میشود و پس از بوسیدنِ لبهایِ او، خان این صحنه را دیده و کاندید را از قلعه بیرون میکند
‎بیرون از قلعه، کاندید گرسنه و بی پول، گیرِ استخدام کنندگان ارتشِ پروس می افتد و او را به ارتش میبرند.. در آنجا فرار میکند و باز دستگیر میشود و پس از خوردنِ تازیانهٔ بسیار، پادشاه به او رحم کرده و او را میبخشد.. پس از بهبودِ کاندید از زخم هایِ تازیانه، پروس و فرانسه واردِ جنگ میشوند.. البته ولتر از این دو سرزمین، با نام های بلغار و آوار، یاد کرده است
‎کاندید در نبرد میان این دو سرزمین شرکت نکرد و با فرار از صحنهٔ جنگ به کشورِ هلند رفت.. در آنجا بی پول و بدونِ غذا، هیچ ترحم و مهربانی از دینداران و مذهبیان که فقط شعار میدادند، ندید.. تنها کسی که به او کمک کرد، یک مردِ بی دین و خردمند به نام «جیمز ضد تعمید» بود.. نه تنها به او غذا و پول داد، بلکه به او پیشنهاد داد در کارخانهٔ تولید پارچهٔ او مشغول به کار شود... در همان شهر، کاندید به طور اتفاقی گدایی را میبیند و پس از کمک به او متوجه میشود او همان پانگلوس است که سفلیس (سیفلیس) گرفته و بدبخت و بیچاره شده است.. پانگلوس برای او تعریف میکند که پروس ها یا همان بلغارها، به کانگاند تجاوز کردند و او را کشتند. سپس خان و همسرش و تمامیِ اهلِ قلعه را کشتند و قلعه را ویران کردند، البته جای نگرانی نیست، چراکه فرانسوی ها یا همان آوارها نیز همین کار را با یکی از قلعه ها و افرادِ پروس ها کردند!!!!! خلاصه جیمز به این پانگلوسِ خوش بین و سفلیسی کمک میکند و او را از مرگ نجات میدهد و بعدها همراهِ هم با کشتی به لیسبونِ پرتغال میروند .. ولی در آنجا کشتی اسیر طوفان شده و جیمز غرق میشود.. کاندید و پانگلوس هم پس از نجات از زلزله در شهر، گیرِ دادگاه تفتیش عقاید افتاده و پانگلوس دار زده شده و کاندید هم شلاق میخورد
‎بعدها کاندید از طریق یک پیرزن مهربان، کانگاند را پیدا میکند و متوجه میشود که او نمرده است و در این مدت او نیز سختی هایِ زیادی را تحمل کرده و بین یک یهودی و یک روحانیِ مسیحی، در طول هفته دست به دست میشده است
‎خلاصه کاندید در داستان با آدمهایِ مختلفی آشنا شده، به سرزمین هایِ گوناگون سفر میکند، پولدار میشود و فقیر میشود، ولی آنچه ثابت است، درد و رنجی است که مدام میبینید. درد و رنجی که هم به او وارد میشود و هم به کسانی که با آنها در سفرهایش آشنا میشود
‎عزیزانم، بدون تردید این اثر یکی از ناب ترین آثار تاریخِ ادبیات است. بهتر است خودتان این داستان را خوانده و از سرانجام آن آگاه شوید
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‎جملاتی از این کتاب
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‎پدران روحانی همه چیز دارند و مردم هیچ ندارند و این خود حجتِ قوی دال بر انصاف و عدالت آنهاست.. من هیچکس را متقی تر و باخداتر از پدرانِ روحانی سراغ ندارم.. آنها میانِ پادشاهان پرتغال و اسپانیا جنگ راه می اندازند و به عنوانِ نمایندگانِ خدا بر رویِ زمین، برای تزکیهٔ روحِ همین پادشاهان از آنها اعتراف به گناه میگیرند
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‎کاندید خطاب به پیرِ خردمند در الدورادو پرو: یعنی شما روحانیون مذهبی ندارید که آموزش بدهند، بحث و جدل کنند، قانون وضع کنند، توطئه بکنند و مردمی که با آنها مخالف هستند را زنده زنده بسوزانند؟
‎پیر خردمند: ما باید آدمهایِ دیوانه ای باشیم که چنین افرادی را داشته باشیم
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‎یکی از مختصات و مشخصاتِ آدمهایِ احمق این است که چیزِ بی معنایی را که با واژه هایِ زیبا بیان شده باشد، میستایند
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‎امیدوارم این ریویو در جهتِ آشنایی با این کتاب، مفید بوده باشه
‎«پیروز باشید و ایرانی»

ولتر یک فیلسوف دئیست. معتقد به وجود یک خالق برتر که در عملکرد مخلوق خود دخالت نمی کند.
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و با این باور جهان رو به زوال می دونه و این که بهترین جا برای زندگی نیست و نقدهای کوبنده ای به ساختار قدرت در فرانسه، کلیسای کاتولیک، سنت ها و ...فرود میاره.
نتیجه گیری ولتر در پایان این هست که با همه ی اینها باید مزرعه ی خود را بارور کنیم!
قلم ولتر موجز و به دور از هر گونه اضافه گویی هست که بسیار این نکته لذت بخش بود.
جان مطلب رو به بهترین شکل در 180 صفحه بیان کرد.