Pangloss Philosophies In Candide

Voltaire shows repeatedly the heartlessness of this belief through the challenges Candide and his friends faced. In the first chapter, Candide’s entire world was his home in the castle of the Baron in Westphalia. Once he was thrust outside the castle, he faces many challenges and hardships, but he does not realize that the world, in which he experiences his sufferings, is the real world. That world of hardships is analogous to the world Voltaire experiences. Even with his pessimistic mindset (he believes people are fundamentally miserable creatures), Voltaire knows that the real world is not a paradise; horrible situations are always going to occur and they are inexcusable and unexplainable. As Candide experiences more of the horrific world and society, Voltaire shows that this kind of world is the true

As the reader continues to read about Candide’s travels, the events become more predictable and episodic. Traumatic events follow more traumatic events. When Candide is not running away from his death sentence, he is being robbed or flogged or murdering someone. Voltaire is clearly poking fun and satirizing how Candide experiences life while still holding on to Pangloss’ beliefs. From an outside perspective, Candide and other characters’ experiences were not only harsh but comedic. For example, there were many characters who died and returned again whole and alive, including Dr. Pangloss and the Baron (Cunégonde’s brother). Dr. Pangloss even gave a comedic speech on how he attained a disease that has stemmed from Christopher Columbus, which parodied the royal genealogy. With these humorous twists and turns, Voltaire was successful in portraying the brutal reality of the world. He was not afraid to reveal explicit violence to show that every bad occurrence cannot be