The Theme Of Society In Voltaire's Candide

“To learn who rules over you, simply find out who you are not allowed to criticize” (Voltaire). In 1759, Voltaire wrote Candide to satirize the government and many other aspects of the society during that time. He uses his main character of the story, Candide, and places him, along with many other characters, into a journey around the world in search for his true love. In doing so, Voltaire conveys multiple messages about humanity. Among his targets, he explains the irony in a well put together and prideful army, the immorality in the customarily virtuous religion, and the uselessness of greed in the long run. To convey his theme that human nature is imperfect, Voltaire utilizes many literary devices to target war, greed, and religion in society.

For example, Candide and his servant, Cacambo, discover the utopia of El Dorado, but this would like to leave because they have become unsatisfied with what the society has and decide to take many riches from the land. In El Dorado the king lectures them when he says, “‘You are foolish,’ said the King. ‘I am sensible that my kingdom is but a small place, but when a person is comfortably settled in any part he should abide there’...‘But a few sheep laden with provisions, pebbles, and the earth of this country.’ The King laughed. ‘I cannot conceive,’ said he, ‘what pleasure you Europeans find in our yellow clay’” (74). Candide’s desire for only material goods emphasizes the prominence of greed throughout Europe and the world throughout history. Despite taking these riches from El Dorado, Candide eventually loses all of his riches and finds himself with the same amount of, or even less, material than with what he started. Throughout his journey, Candide encounters many people who try to cheat him, such as the captain of the ship going to Europe, who constantly raises the price for Candide to ride. After the ship Candide was on sank, he lost nearly all of his riches. “The enormous riches which this rascal had stolen were sunk behind him in the sea, and nothing was saved but a single sheep” (82). Candide’s eventual lack of sheep and riches utilizes allegory to highlight that wealth is

The church should emulate virtue from religion, but religion in the book is depicted as being corrupt. For example, the religious leaders in the society are corrupt, including the Pope who has a daughter. As the old woman explains, “‘I had not always bleared eyes and red eyelids; neither did my nose always touch my chin; nor was I always a servant. I am the daughter of Pope Urban X, and of the Princess of Palestrina’” (41). The old woman’s story exposes the fact that the Pope has a daughter, while he is supposed to be celibate. In addition, the friar possesses a prostitute, and prostitution is a sin against the religion to which he belongs. The prostitute with which the friar is with must pretend to be happy in order to please him. “‘Ah! sir,’ answered Paquette, ‘this is one of the miseries of the trade. Yesterday I was robbed and beaten by an officer; yet to-day I must put on good humor to please a friar.’” (103). The prostitute’s response exposes that the friar wrongfully has a prostitute solely for pleasure. The religion’s corruption greatly influences the lack of purity in humanity because without a being a proper role model, religion is only voicing to the people that these actions are