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A review by naufalahmads
Candide and Other Stories by Voltaire
3.0
This particular edition is translated by Roger Pearson and collects several of Voltaire's work, namely Candide, Micromegas, Zadig, The Ingenu, and The White Bull. I'll do a general overview of the book first followed by individual review of the stories in later updates.
I'm still not fully sure what to make of the book, but it's definitely interesting, insightful, enjoyable, and often times funny. I feel like a greater understanding of western philosophy would make Voltaire's writings more appreciable.
Candide
Often cited as the forefather of satire and philosophical novels, Candide had me laughing from the very first page. So story wise it's about a young man who traveled the world due to his relatively unfortunate circumstances. His former philosophy teacher had taught him that all is for the best, that is to say, because everything is made for a purpose then everything is necessarily for the best purpose. Or in other words, everything is the way it's meant to be and for the best (or at least that's my take on it), and so Candide traveled the world with this philosophical lens. During which, he experienced so many extraordinary things, almost all of which challenged his philosophical senses.
Though it may be a serious work, Voltaire delivered Candide in perfectly humorous way. It was just so amusing, I had so many, "What the fuck just happened? Did that really happen?" moments throughout my read. It's definitely a book for all ages, regardless when and where you are when you read it, it's always going to be relevant as its philosophical underlying is to do with inherent nature of human to take meaning and ask questions of themselves, nature, and fate.
I'm still not fully sure what to make of the book, but it's definitely interesting, insightful, enjoyable, and often times funny. I feel like a greater understanding of western philosophy would make Voltaire's writings more appreciable.
Candide
Often cited as the forefather of satire and philosophical novels, Candide had me laughing from the very first page. So story wise it's about a young man who traveled the world due to his relatively unfortunate circumstances. His former philosophy teacher had taught him that all is for the best, that is to say, because everything is made for a purpose then everything is necessarily for the best purpose. Or in other words, everything is the way it's meant to be and for the best (or at least that's my take on it), and so Candide traveled the world with this philosophical lens. During which, he experienced so many extraordinary things, almost all of which challenged his philosophical senses.
Though it may be a serious work, Voltaire delivered Candide in perfectly humorous way. It was just so amusing, I had so many, "What the fuck just happened? Did that really happen?" moments throughout my read. It's definitely a book for all ages, regardless when and where you are when you read it, it's always going to be relevant as its philosophical underlying is to do with inherent nature of human to take meaning and ask questions of themselves, nature, and fate.