Jonathan Swift, Moliere, Voltaire - New Ways of Thinking Writers use personality traits and events to change the classical ideals. Majority of the writer's focus is to change people's attitude's. Jonathan Swift, Jean-Baptiste Poquelin Moliere, Francois-Marie Arquet de Voltaire use characterization and plot to either or challenge the themes of the Neo-Classical period. In A Modest Proposal, Jonathan Swift challenges the Neo-classical period by creating a sense of instability in their way of thinking. He attacks the society by carelessly endorsing cannibalism in hopes to help Ireland through their economic crisis. He demonstrates this by humbly proposing and assuring "that a young healthy child, well nursed, is, at a year old, a most delicious, nourishing, and wholesome food." (Swift, 485) Implying that society should eat children shows that the individual (the child) is seen as an unimportant individual to society; therefore, is not valued when considering an effective resolution to their situation. This provides criticism to the Neo-Classical beliefs that society is more important than the individual. The Neo-Classic's logic and reasoning aspect is attacked by Swift's persuasion that eating a child is a valid response to help fix their oppression. His introduction clearly states that his purpose is" for Preventing the Children of poor People in Ireland, from being a Burden to their Parents or Country, and for making them beneficial to the Publick." (Swift 483) His reasoning for the proposal is ultimately satisfied through his sound thinking that evidently has nothing to do with his feelings about the matter. The narrator than proceeds to give the audience justification of his statement, and therefore attempting to challenge the Neo-Classic's fact that logic and reasoning is more important than a person's emotion's. Optimism in the Neo-Classical period is criticized through the projector's tone in the proposal. Swift demands the audience to recognize the narrator's purpose "having no other motive than the public good of my country, by advancing our trade, providing for infant's, relieving the poor, and giving some pleasure to the rich." (Swift 489) The speaker optimistically believes that his idea is for the best. If Swift did not believe that his idea would not have a positive outcome he would not have suggested. Regardless of Swift's inhumane suggestion, which is negative, he only tries to reveal the positive of the situation. This feeling of insecurity is his way of disparaging the Irish and English government. In Tartuffe, Moliere's use's plot to defend and oppose characters that symbolize and ridicule habitual behavior's that was imposed during the neo-classical time period. His work, known as a comedy of manners, consists of flat characters, with few and similar traits, and that always restore some kind of peace in the end. He down plays society as a whole by creating a microseism, where everyone in the family has to be obedient, respectful, and mindful of the head of the home, which is played by the father Orgon. Mariane shows her obedience when she replies "To please you, sir, is what delights me best." (Moliere 324,11) Shortly afterwards, Orgon commands Mariane to take Tartuffe as her husband even though she is not interested in him at all. Orgon's command shows how men are dominate and have control over social order. Mariane's strong obedience to her father (Orgon) supports the Neo-Classical element that the individual is not as important as society. Moliere discusses logic and reasoning by blindfolding Orgon to the reality of Tartuffe's intentions that causes him to make dumb decisions. In the process, Orgon disregard's his family when told of Tartuffe's intentions. After Tartuffe cons Orgon into believing that Damis's accusation is false Orgon replies, "I know your motives, I now you wish him ill:/Yes, all of you - wife, children, servants, all - /Conspire against him and desire his fall." (Moliere 341-342,46-48) Orgon then excommunicates his own son, indicating that his reasoning is deferred due to his ignorance. This in due course challenges the Neo-Classical belief that logic and reasoning is more important than emotion because Orgon acts solely on his emotions. He feels as if his family has turned against his friend so he operates upon his feelings. When Damis returns home and Tartuffe (instead of Orgon) gets locked up, order is restored. At the end, the family commends the officer for apprehending the true criminal by saying, "Heaven be praised! / We're safe. / I can't believe the danger's past." (Moliere 361, 84-87) This is when Moliere demonstrated the common saying that "what happens in the dark will eventually come to the light, therefore allowing confusion to re-establish its order. Moliere developed a series of flat characters, which satirized the Neo-Classic belief system. In Candide, Voltaire's approach is called black comedy. Many devastating factor's play into the character's lives that causes the reader to be amused in a cynical way in order to guard their inner feelings. He challenges society as a whole by the way he implements real life occurrences into his writing and makes them come alive. This becomes evident when Dr. Pangloss told Candide what came of Cunegonde at the castle of Westphalia after he left. Pangloss described her as being "disemboweled by the Bulgar soldiers, after having been raped to the absolute limit of human endurance." (Voltaire 524) This causes the imagination to display a vivid picture of the severity of the situation. Furthermore he challenges order by illustrating the human condition. Candide's confusion causes him to ask, "have they always been liars, traitors, ingrates, thieves, weaklings, sneaks, cowards, backbiters, gluttons, drunkards, misers, climbers, killer's, calumniators, sensualists, fanatics, hypocrites, and fools?" (Voltaire 557) There is an ongoing war between people, and all the while Candide and the others are attempting to maintain. Dr. Pangloss represents the optimism that Voltaire challenges. Pangloss show this by saying, "it was love; love, the consolation of the human race, the preservative of the universe, the soul of all sensitive beings, love, gentle love." (Voltaire 525) He challenges, " optimism by his representation of Dr. Pangloss. Dr. Pangloss's blind optimistic approach allows him to forget about the fighting that is occurring amongst people and he only sees love. Satirical approaches to writing were used to change the captivated way of thinking during the late 17th and 18th centuries. The Neo-Classic time period contributed in the expansion of people's view of life. Works Cited Swift, Jonathan. "The Norton Anthology of World Literature." A Modest Proposal. W.W> Norton & Company: New York and London, 2002. 483-489. Moliere, Jean-Baptiste Poquelin. "The Norton Anthology of World Literature." Tartuffe. W.W> Norton & Company: New York and London, 2002. 313-361. Voltaire, Francois-Marie Arquet de Voltaire. "The Norton Anthology of World Literature." Candide. W.W> Norton & Company: New York and London, 2002. 520-580
Voltaire was the French author of the novella Candide, also known as "Optimism" (Durant and Durant 724). Famous as a playwright and essayist, Voltaire’s Candide is the book where he tries to point out the fallacy of Gottfried William von Leibniz's theory of Optimism. He uses satire, and techniques of exaggeration to contrast highlight the evil and brutality of war and the world in general when men are meekly accepting of their fate. Leibniz, a German philosopher and mathematician of Voltaire's time, developed the idea that the world they were living in at that time was "the best of all possible worlds." This systematic optimism shown by Leibniz is the philosophical system that believed everything already was for the best, no matter how terrible it seemed. In this satire, Voltaire also used contrast in the personalities of the characters to convey the message that Leibniz's philosophy should not be dealt with any seriousness.
The supporters of the Equal Rights Amendment seem to feel sex discrimination laws are simply not enough. The federal laws and regulations contain many loopholes, are inconsistently interpreted and may be repealed outright (NOW 1). Many supporters claim the Equal Rights Amendment is needed "to clarify law for the lower courts, whose decisions still reflect confusion and inconsistency about how to deal with sex discrimination claims (Francis 2). There is a supporting theory argument that "an amendment of equality would absolutely shift the burden away ...
Smith C. Plutarch. Magill’S Survey Of World Literature, Revised Edition [serial online]. January 2009;:1-4. Available from: Literary Reference Center, Ipswich, MA. Accessed January 30, 2014.
Voltaire's Candide is a novel which contains conceptual ideas and at the same time is also exaggerated. Voltaire offers sad themes disguised by jokes and witticism, and the story itself presents a distinctive outlook on life. The crucial contrast in the story deals with irrational ideas as taught to Candide about being optimistic, versus reality as viewed by the rest of the world.
This is seen through Pangloss, Candide’s teacher and a professor of metaphysico-theologico-cosmolo-nigology. Pangloss’s philosophy is said to be, “that there is no effect without a cause, and that, in this best of all possible worlds (4)”. He continues to say, “that things cannot be otherwise than as they are; for all being created for an end, all is necessarily for the best end (4).” Candide and Pangloss travel a happen upon Lisbon, which three-fourths was destroyed by an earthquake. Many people are blamed and punished, including Candide, who was whipped, and Pangloss, who was hanged. After this Candide exclaims, “"If this is the best of possible worlds, what then are the others? Well, if I had been only whipped I could put up with it, for I experienced that among the Bulgarians; but oh, my dear Pangloss! thou greatest of philosophers, that I should have seen you hanged, without knowing for what! (16)”. Candide is out right questions his teaching and therefore questioning optimism. Continuing his journey, Candide meeting Martin, who foils Pangloss. If Pangloss was an optimism, then Martin was a pessimist. Martin expects nothing but the worst from the world. The text explains, “Candide, however, had one great advantage over Martin, in that he always hoped to see Miss Cunegonde; whereas Martin had nothing at all to hope.” Voltaire’s goal with both characters, Pangloss and Martin, was to teach the public
Voltaire’s most classic work, Candide, is a satiric assault on most everything that was prevalent in society during the author’s lifetime. The entire novel can be regarded as a bleak story where every character compares life stories to see whose life is worse. Just when the novel cannot get anymore morbid or depressing, it does, to a much greater degree. While Candide is generally considered a universal denunciation, it is optimism that Voltaire is attacking to the greatest degree. However, there are numerous other satirical themes throughout the novel worth discussing. These other areas of mockery include aristocratic snobbery, religious bigotry, militarism, and human nature.
Maurois, Andre. "The Sage of Ferney." Voltaire. New York: D. Appleton & Co, 1932. Rpt. in Candide. Trans. Bair, Lowell.
Plato’s, The Crito, tells an account of Socrates’ death sentence in Athens, Greece, shortly after the Peloponnesian War. Socrates is jailed and awaiting his execution, which is a decision made by the state after a trial coupled with an unsuccessful appeal. The state makes the argument that by defying his sentence, he would be going against The Laws of Athens. This, in turn, would be acting unjustly, or in a way that would harm the people. In breaking this legally binding agreement by leaving rather than implementing his sentence, he would be going against the unspoken social contract that he had made and had consented to for the past seventy years. If he had found anything flawed with The Laws of Athens, then he could have left the city at any time previous to his conviction (Plato 52d-e). Also, when convicted, he did nothing to help his situation in that he rejected a prison sentence, exile, and condemnation. He maintained that if he were to be let free, he must be able to resume his life as it was previous to his conviction.
Candide is a famous French satire written by French philosopher, Voltaire. In this satire, Voltaire humorously ridicules Leibniz’s belief of optimism, the violence the military employ during war and the hypocrisy of religion. This essay aims to describe some of the techniques that Voltaire uses to satirize Leibniz through the character of Pangloss, the military through the Bulgarian War, and religious figures through the hypocrisy of the Grand Inquisitor and the Friar, showing how the humor is achieved in the description of the characters.
In Moliere's comedy, Tartuffe, the main focus of the play is not of Tartuffe, but of Orgon's blind infatuation with Tartuffe. It just so happens that the title character is the villain, rather than the hero. Orgon is Moliere's representation of how a man can be so blind in his devotion to a belief that he cannot make accurate judgment as to the sincerity of others who would use that belief to deceive him. Tartuffe easily achieves total power over Orgon's actions because of his gullibility. However, as the play progresses, Orgon's view of Tartuffe changes and results in Tartuffe's removal.
Tartuffe is a satirical comedic play written by Molière in 1664. It is focused around the family of Orgon and the character of Tartuffe, who has become Orgon’s personal holy man. Before being brought into Orgon’s home, Tartuffe was nothing more than a common beggar who learned how to act pious. Throughout this play, we see Orgon give everything he owns to Tartuffe: his love, his money, his daughter, and even the deed to his house. While everyone else in the household sees Tartuffe for who he really is, Orgon remains blind to it throughout most of the play. Orgon is warned many times by different members of the household, including his own son, yet he only chooses to lash out against those speaking. From early on in the play we as readers are able to recognize that Tartuffe is no more than a hypocrite and Orgon is a blind fool. In the play Tartuffe by Molière there are several different important themes that impact this work,
Voltaire did not believe in the power of reason to overcome contemporary social conditions.In Candide, Voltaire uses Pangloss and his ramblings to represent an often humorous characterization of the "typical" optimist. Of Pangloss, Voltaire writes, "He proved admirably that there cannot possibly be an effect without a cause and that in the best of all possible worlds the Baron’s castle was the best of all castles and his wife the best of all possible Baronesses." (522) The attack on the claim that this is "the best of all possible worlds" permeates the entire novel. Throughout the story, satirical references to this theme contrast with natural catastrophes and human wrongdoing. When reunited with the diseased and dying Pangloss, who had contracted syphilis, Candide asks if the Devil is at fault.
Voltaire, Francois-Marie Arouet de. “Candide.” The Norton Anthology of World Literature. Gen. ed. Martin Puchner. Shoter 3rd ed. Vol. 2. New York: Norton, 2013. 100-59. Print.
The second argument that supports Socrates decision to stay in prison is that of the repercussions to the city of Athens. If Socrates escaped, the Athens city together with its fabric, laws, would be annihilated. By the extension, destruction of the Athens’ city equally destroyed the lives of people of Athens. Socrates argues that harming others is similar to harming ones soul because such an act constituted an unjust act. Therefore, it was a wiser decision to meet death rather than escape.
Bottiglia, William. "Candide's Garden." Voltaire: A Collection of Critical Essays. New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1968.