Tending Voltaire's Garden

Finishing Candide, I was left confused. Why would Voltaire bring back to life both Pangloss and the Baron? Also, the way he ended the novel Final chapter "Conclusion" seemed that he wanted to rush things through and get it over with. My expectations were that Candide would finally find what he was looking for without any problems but it seemed that from the beginning, the story was nothing but a misfortune.

Although the highly noticeable rushing of Voltaire to end the novel, he ends it with a simple sentence, that again must be analyzed to comprehend its very core meaning.

"'That's true enough,' said Candide; 'but we must go and work in the garden.'" (pg. 144)

Going a bit back we can see Pangloss explains what Candide means in garden. “’I also know,’ said Candide, ‘that we must go and work in the garden.’

'You are quite right,’ said Pangloss. ‘When man was placed in the Garden of Eden, he was put there “to dress it and to keep it”, to work, in fact; which proves that man was not born to an easy life.’” (pg 143)

I find it interesting that pangloss, after having a much distant theory of life with everything is for the best and everything is made for an apparent reason, he suddenly believes in the Bible's theory of life. Another thing that makes me question what was going on in Voltaire's head as he wrote these final pages. 

Though my interpretation of the last sentence of Candide is that each garden is different to every person. Some work hard on it and some don't. Some have more in it and others less. Thus the garden is someone's life. Candide states that everything that has happened before may had an impact on the present but what lies on the future, lies on what one wants to gain from it. Of course, Voltaire's garden is figuratively and is far away from being the same as the garden in the Bible. 

Finally, this book was interesting to read. Never have I read satirical books, essays or poems in my life and was both confusing, irritating and funny when it came to understanding but the only words I am left are: Why Voltaire, why?  

Utopia in a Dystopia?

Candide's and Cacambo's journey has made a turn of the best. After all the torturous path they had taken from Paraguay, escaping the barbaric Oreillons they had found hope. “They had a rough idea which direction to take, but they found formidable obstacles everywhere in the shape of mountains, rivers, precipices, brigands, and savages.” (pg. 73).

ad found themselves in Eldorado which had blown theirs minds on the way the people lived and prospered. “’What Country can this be?’ said one to the other. ‘It must be unknown to the rest of the world, because everything is so different from what we are used to. It is probably the country where all goes well: for there must obviously be some such place. And whatever professor Pangloss might say, I often noticed that all went badly in all Westphalia.’” (pg. 77). They both had wandered into this utopia without recognizing it. Somehow their luck had just changed. As they explore this unknown territory they are surprised to learn of how peaceful it is with no disputes what-so-ever.

Their reactions must be represented as those from the early colonization time period. They are baffled as they see ordinary children playing with gold and jewels and how they are interpreted as their useless rocks. Something so regular for some can be such a treasure to others. Just like the spaniards with the Incas' gold.

What makes this a utopia is not the gold and jewels that is surrounding the whole city but the culture. I can remember in one of my first english class of the semester, I had to create a utopia. In my utopia I wrote that it must include rights for everyone, equality, freedom of speech and no disputes between people. Eldorado basically described a utopia that included most of the ideas I had for mine. It is a utopia inside a dystopia. It is funny how the it has not yet fallen into the misfortune of corruption as the rest of the world has.

I am eager to know what will happen to both our protagonists while they stay in "paradise".

Discovering the Unknown

Candide and Cacambo, after escaping from the Jesuit Paraguay, entered Oreillons territory in which was a completely strange and new place for both of them. They barley survived the barbaric Oreillons trying to, by the looks of it, eat them as a punishment for murdering their lovers, monkeys, and for believing that they were Jesuits. "They were encompassed by fifty naked Oreillons, armed with bows and arrows, with clubs and flint hatchets. Some were making a large cauldron boil, others were preparing spits, and all cried: "A Jesuit! a Jesuit! we shall be revenged, we shall have excellent cheer, let us eat the Jesuit, let us eat him up!"" (pg. 70) Showing the Oreillons that they weren’t Jesuits and that they had killed the Colonel saved them. They were set free.

It is interesting how Voltaire describes the New World as being savage and barbaric. It’s a wilderness filled with uncivilized indigenous tribes trying to eat Jesuits. The very first stories about the New World were some years after Christopher Columbus discovered it in 1492. These stories contained experiences of people when they were exploring for gold. Some were against the indigenous tribes, exaggerating the things that they did and how their culture was. Some, mainly missionaries, wrote stories that explained and inspired their diverse culture. The exaggeration of these stories triggered the thought of the New World, by the Europeans, to be a dangerous and uncivilized place. I have no information of Voltaire ever visiting America and experiencing what he describes in Candide. He might have passed on the stories he heard or read of the New World and incorporated them into the novel.

From suffering near death experiences, Candide and Cacambo move on to find help and return to Lady Cunégonde.  Will they experience any more savage tribes? Will they get lost in the rainforest? From what Candide has experienced and from what Voltaire has given the audience, these are possibilities of what Candide’s destiny holds. 

Miracles? Bloody Hands.

Isn't it funny when you meet a relative or a friend in another place that you had no idea of meeting them there? Well Candide just found one in his adventures on the other side of the planet. After all his misfortunes he had finally found a miracle. Or was it?

After all the traveling and enemies Candide experienced, the audience should of guessed that only bad luck revolved around him in the novel. "'Can this really be you?' said the Colonel.

'This is beyond the bounds of possibility!' said Candide. They both fell back in amazement, and then embraced each other and burst into tears."

The way Voltaire describes how both Candide and The Colonel, his brother-in-law, meet each other after so escaping death and torture gives the audience the thought that things have changed direction of luck for the main character. But this was deceiving. After a couple of seconds, Candide explains his experiences and how he wants Lady Cunégonde, the Colonels sister, as a wife. This acted like a trigger to a bomb. Suddenly like a blink of an eye, their mood changes. The Colonel was not happy with Candide's metion of marrying Lady Cunegonde. "We shall see about that, you rascal ,' said the Jesuit Baron von Thunder-ten-tronckh; and with those words he struck him across the face with the flat of his swords."(pg. 67) With instinct, Candide kills the Colonel because he refused to give Lady Cunegénde's hand for marriage. Now why would he instantly kill someone that could of saved his destiny.

Just as in Shakespeare's Macbeth, Candide can't believe he has killed three men for the love of Lady Cunégonde and senses his "bloody hands" will never be clean again. Will Candide do anything more for his love's sake? Will there be a twist to the story from now on? All this I hope to answer when I continue Voltaire's Candide. 

Enjoy Your Life While You Can

People who complain about their lives are constantly around me. Some complain because of the amount of homework they receive, other just because their soccer club weren't given a foul. Of course these complains change over time and even disappear, however, Voltaire introduces not one, not two, but three people that have experienced misfortunes as we progress through their lives. 

As each character explains their unfortunate events, from Candide to Lady Cunégonde and finally the old woman, they can't possibly think of a person who has endured worst than they have. "...'unless you have been ravished by two Bulgars, had two stabs in your belly, and two of your country houses demolished; unless you have had two mothers and two fathers butchered before your eyes, and beheld two of your lovers flogged at an auto-da-fé, I don't see how you can rival me, especially as I am a baron's daughter with seventy-two quarterings in my coat of arms, and yet have served as a kitchen-maid.'"(pg. 49)

Voltaire writes in the character's point of view with the emotion of hopelessness. With the hint of hyperbole and a pinch of irony here and there makes it more and more obvious to the audience that Voltaire some what mocks their grief. Although, at the end of chapter eleven, Voltaire couldn’t resist to describe how a by stander suffers because he couldn’t take advantage of a beautiful lady because he didn’t have his… male genitalia.

As Voltaire was a famous writer at his time period, he used to write famous works and pamphlets involving freedom of the general population and criticizing the French aristocracy.  In doing so, he wrote about citizen lives under misery thus incorporating them into Candide.

Learning from where the old lady came from and how Lady Cunégonde survived, I am eager to read and find out if there are any other people with misfortunes coming from close to death experiences or just not being able to pleasure themselves.

The Wrong Kind of Candid

Candid, truthful and straightforward. Or is it a picture taken without the subjects knowledge? Well both of these descriptions are right, however, Voltaire's Candide might not be either one. The novel is bursting with satire which can be obvious but deceiving.   

From Irony to hyperboles,  Candide includes so much detail and hidden messages that it takes a second time reading to figure out what it really means. It can be funny and witty but also a pain in the neck. Although, once you get what the text is inferring, you just have to compliment Voltaire's wittiness with a "Oh Voltaire, you clever son of a gun!" 

"'I fear love,'said his companion; 'love, the comforter of humanity, the preserver of the universe, the soul of all human beings; tender love!'" (pg. 29)

It is funny how Pangloss, Candide´s philosopher, says these words as he had just experienced a brutal attack by the Bulgars which had raped and massacred the "mansion" that he had been staying with his lords. Yet he states that it is love, that can have many meanings such as caring, affection and loyalty that have nothing to do with harming and hate, even, they are the exact opposite, that is what every human being has in his soul while society is going through wars and destruction. Ironic you ask? Yes.

Voltaire has made it clear to us that he uses satire for mostly, mockery. From the names of the German towns to the way he portrays nobleness, this novel from the looks of it is a labyrinth full of messages at the middle waiting to be found.