Candide Or Optimism
Candide Or Optimism by Francois Voltaire is a reissue published by Penguin on June 30, 1950, featuring 144 pages in English. This work presents a satirical exploration of the philosophy of optimism, as embodied by the character Pangloss, who insists that “all is for the best in the best of all possible worlds.” Through the misadventures of Candide and his companions, Voltaire critiques the inadequacies of this optimistic worldview in the face of suffering, natural disasters, and human conflict.
Readers will find a vivid portrayal of the absurdities of life as Candide navigates a series of calamities and reversals of fortune. The narrative serves as a sharp commentary on the human condition, blending elements of fiction and satire. As one of the significant works of eighteenth-century literature, this edition invites readers to reflect on the complexities of existence and the often misguided nature of philosophical optimism.
Official synopsis Publisher
“All is for the best in the best of all possible worlds”
It was the indifferent shrug and callous inertia that this “optimism” concealed which so angered Voltaire, who found the “all for the best” approach a patently inadequate response to suffering, to natural disasters, not to mention the questions of illness and man-made war. Moreover, as the rebel whose satiric genius had earned him not only international acclaim, but two stays in the Bastille, flogging, and exile, Voltaire knew personally what suffering entailed. In Candide he whisks his young hero and friends through a ludicrous variety of tortures, tragedies, and a reversal of fortune, in the company of Pangloss, a “metaphysico-theologo-comolo-nigologist” of unflinching optimism. The result is one of the glories of eighteenth-century satire.
For more than sixty-five years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,500 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.
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