Candide's Journey

Candide’s Journey through self discovery

Voltaire's meaning of “we must cultivate our garden” refers to cultivating oneself and understanding that one creates its own future. Throughout the novel the character

Candide follows the philosophy of Dr. Pangloss of “all is for the best” (3). Candide believes that the events that occur to him are planned by fate. Therefore he blindly accepts all the misfortunes that he experiences in the story. In the end, Candide lives in a farm where everyone works for themselves (71). Every character has its own task to do. Candide is able to see that fate no longer dictates his future and learns that you have control over it with the actions you carry out. Candide embarks on a journey in which he learns

For instance, when “[Candide] tried to leap into the sea after him [James the Anabaptist]; Pangloss the philosopher stopped him by proving to him that the Lisbon harbor was formed expressly for the Anabaptist to drown in” (10). When James the Anabaptist falls into the ocean Candide tries to save him, but is stopped by Dr. Pangloss. Even though Candide knows that the morally correct thing to do is to at least try to help the Anabaptist, but he doesn’t because he followed what someone else told him to do. His gullibility is further shown when the Dutch Captain is able to steal thirty thousand piasters and two sheep from Candide (40). As a result of his urgency to reunite with Cunegonde, Candide is willing to give any amount of money to be taken to Venice and thus resulting in the Dutch Captain taking advantage of him. Consequently, allowing Candide to learn that he must be aware of others and be mindful of the decisions he

Pangloss and his beliefs. When this belief is first introduced by Dr Pangloss, he gives an unreasonable justification by stating that “noses were made to wear spectacles; we therefore have spectacles. Legs were clearly devised to wear breeches, and we have breeches” (3). Dr. Pangloss explains to Candide that everything there is in the world was made solely for one purpose in life. This absurd explanation uses the tool of exaggeration to prove the unrealistic aspirations of this philosophy. Furthermore, Candide experiences the constant farewell from his love interest, the brutality of the Bulgarian army, the evil in human nature and many more things. Every time Candide encounters something horrible he justifies it with this philosophy. Despite the tragic events that he encounters, Candide continues to believe and stand by this belief when it is clearly evident that some of his experiences are not condonable. Voltaire uses irony and exaggeration to prove that what Candide so strongly believes in is an illogical