After reading the first three chapters of Candide, I could say that Voltaire wrote this book to teach people about philosophy and about society. This novel is filled with values as well and there are important lessons that it teaches us about life.
The first element that I noticed was the constant tone of some of the characters, especially those who were supposed to have a lot of wisdom. These characters seem to be speaking in a teacher-like way. One perfect example is the following quote, “ Master Pangloss taught the metaphysico-theologo-cosmolonigology. He could prove to admiration that there is no effect without a cause.”(chapt.1) In this segment of the we are introduced to the teachings of Master Pangloss. They are very profound thoughts and they reflect a lot of society’s aspects. When I read this line for the first time I thought it was a very powerful quote and that everything it said was very true. You will always have an effect that took place because something caused it. This is nature and science combined with logics.
At the end of this first chapter, I encountered a scene were Candide has a romantic moment with Miss Cunegonde, “very particular; their lips met; their eyes sparkled; their knees trembled; their hands strayed.”(chapt.1)When I saw this I was a little disgusted because at the beginning of the novel they mention that Candide lived in that house because it was very probable that he was the son of the sister of the Baroness. If this were to be true, then he would be their nephew and therefore the cousin of the girl that he is in love with. For me this is to a level somewhat incestuous, and maybe Voltaire is trying to tell us something about human kind and love when mentioning this part. When he gets caught committing those acts of “incest” he is punished and the consequence he gets it very bad. This teaches us about the effect- cause theory. It is a way to manipulate the reader and make the result tragic to scare people so they know that it is morally wrong and they shouldn’t do it.
In the next chapter they show us how Candide is very vain and proud. He is given two choices, but because he felt humiliated, he decided to take neither and assume the consequences. “In vain did he remonstrate to them that the human will is free, and that he chose neither; they obliged him to make a choice, and he determined, in virtue of that divine gift called free will, to run the gauntlet six and thirty times.”(chapt. 2) In this part of the novel, he prefers to suffer before he looses his honor. This is probably a quality that Voltaire wanted young men to impose in their life’s, and he used this method to teach about the sacrifices you must do for you vanity and your pride, teaching us to be modest.
Finally, Voltaire shows us how Candide learns the lesson and tries to apply to it to his life. This is a key element to this novel simply because the book teaches us, that we too like the main character should use what we are being told in that book in our life’s, when we need it the most. We should reflect on it and act upon its values and morals. We are all a Candide in our own way. “Now I am convinced that my Master Pangloss told me truth when he said that everything was for the best in this world; for I am infinitely more affected with your extraordinary generosity than with the inhumanity of that gentleman in the black cloak and his wife." (chapt. 3)
