Forbidden Classics · satire of 1759
Candide
Voltaire
About Voltaire’s Candide
Candide, ou l’Optimisme (1759) by the French Enlightenment philosopher Voltaire is a masterpiece of world literature. It is a classic satire that pokes fun at the optimistic thinking of philosophers such as Leibniz, who held that we live in “the best of all possible worlds”. The story follows the naive young man Candide, who carries the lessons of his tutor Pangloss with him on a journey full of bizarre, disastrous, absurd and violent adventures all over the world.
This is a book for adult readers, because of its uncompromising, biting mockery and its raw themes. Voltaire does not shy away from dissecting the horrors of mankind, such as war, the Inquisition, corruption and blind faith, with black humour and cynicism. On publication it was banned at once and publicly burned.
On his journey from idyllic Westphalia to legendary El Dorado and through lands laid waste by war, Candide loses his naivety, but in the end he discovers a down-to-earth way of living. The book reads like a fast, absurd adventure novel full of philosophical depth, and centuries after its publication it is still just as sharp and entertaining.
The classic English translation of 1918 · with introduction and 35 explanatory notes · 131 pages
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