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"Dans ce pays-ci, il est bon de tuer de temps en temps un amiral pour encourager les autres." (In this country, it's good to kill an admiral from time to time, in order to encourage the others)
Candide remains an incredible book. An apparently picaresque and even Pythonesque romp where a young man seeks to marry his childhood sweetheart in spite of lurid misadventures, as he clings to his old teacher's maxim that everything happens for the best in this "best of all possible worlds".
It's not all adventure and silliness though, Voltaire's short novel is probably the definitive social satire, brutally skewering religion, politics, the military and various philosophies. This is an 18th Century French book that has seeded idiomatic phrases into the English language. Il faut cultiver notre jardin, le meillure des mondes possibles and of course pour encourager les autres.
In this absurd tale where cannibals will let you out of the cooking pot if you can prove you killed a Jesuit, and where even hanging and dissection are not always fatal, Voltaire never misses an opportunity to have a good laugh at the world. Read it, and better yet, read it in French.
Candide remains an incredible book. An apparently picaresque and even Pythonesque romp where a young man seeks to marry his childhood sweetheart in spite of lurid misadventures, as he clings to his old teacher's maxim that everything happens for the best in this "best of all possible worlds".
It's not all adventure and silliness though, Voltaire's short novel is probably the definitive social satire, brutally skewering religion, politics, the military and various philosophies. This is an 18th Century French book that has seeded idiomatic phrases into the English language. Il faut cultiver notre jardin, le meillure des mondes possibles and of course pour encourager les autres.
In this absurd tale where cannibals will let you out of the cooking pot if you can prove you killed a Jesuit, and where even hanging and dissection are not always fatal, Voltaire never misses an opportunity to have a good laugh at the world. Read it, and better yet, read it in French.
J'ai dû lire tout ce texte pour ma classe de la littérature française... malheureusement, ce livre était très ennuyeux.
Je ne lis jamais des classiques pour cette raison: l'ennui.
Je ne lis jamais des classiques pour cette raison: l'ennui.
adventurous
funny
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Candide lives in the best of all possible worlds, or so it seems until he is expelled from his castle for necking with the lovely Cunégonde. A hilarious and naughty romp that urges the reader to consider what happiness really is.
funny
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
adventurous
funny
fast-paced
Great book. However, the Bantam Classic edition is only an ok translation. I got my copy for cheap. It tells the story but I'm sure there are other more scholarly translations I would choose if I were to read it again.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I was forced to read this for my world history class and I can't believe that Candide cheated on THE LOVE OF HIS LIFE. He literally spent most of the book trying to get back to her then called her ugly after all of the hardships she had faced!....wtf
adventurous
dark
informative
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced