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dark
funny
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I read about Candide from Zafon's The Shadow of the Wind, wherein the only book that has made one of the characters laugh out loud is Candide. I've not read a lot of comedy, but this was seriously hilarious. Voltaire frames optimism as what we would now term as "toxic positivity", but he does so with such a grandiose scale it feels absurd. Matter of fact, if I wanted an introduction to absurdism I would choose to read this instead of The Stranger. Voltaire's SO FUNNY. Intro pa nga lang. He writes with such a deadpan wit that doesn't become just corny sarcasm and it was so enjoyable to read. It reminds me of another favorite, Cyrano de Bergerac, except less tender and far more crass. I'll be rereading this multiple times across my life.
In Candide, the eponymous character falls in love, is kicked out of the castle in which he resides, becomes a beggar, a soldier, a war hero, loses his love, finds his love (though now ugly) again and realizes that the worst of all his fates was having to live a quiet, boring, and domestic life. What is happiness, and what is its price? Why is adversity sweeter in retrospect? So fantastic.
In Candide, the eponymous character falls in love, is kicked out of the castle in which he resides, becomes a beggar, a soldier, a war hero, loses his love, finds his love (though now ugly) again and realizes that the worst of all his fates was having to live a quiet, boring, and domestic life. What is happiness, and what is its price? Why is adversity sweeter in retrospect? So fantastic.
adventurous
dark
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
dark
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Going into Candide, I had no idea what to expect, but Voltaire's satire definitely caught me off guard. It's crazy how a book from the 1700s feels so fresh and relevant today. The story is wild. It’s full of disasters, dumb decisions, and ridiculous characters, but underneath all the chaos, there's this sharp, funny take on human nature and society's flaws. It's short, fast, and surprisingly deep, the kind of book that sticks with you because, honestly, people haven't changed much.
Knowing what Voltaire's point was doesn't make this book any more enjoyable to read. While not graphically violent, there is a lot of rape, murder, hangings and slavery that don't seem to do anything to any of the characters' psyches other than thoroughly depress the reader into agreeing with Voltaire. I blame Bernstein for my expectations.
adventurous
funny
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
insanely funny. no one could do such scorching religious and social commentary with such hilarious adventure and deconstruction of panglossian optimism as voltaire has done in candide
dark
funny
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes