Interpretation of Three Themes of the Enlightenment
Voltaire’s Candide is a satire of many of the ideas that controlled the lives of men duringthe Enlightenment. Though it is thought to be one of the Enlightenment’s greatest texts, it establishes that the Enlightenment was not concrete. Using unique and interesting characters, Voltaire personified and criticized many social problems of the day including the Clergy and organized religion, the Nobility and Philosophy. The Enlightenment, climaxing in the eighteenth century, caused many to criticize social conditions and traditions. Enlightenment philosophers directed much of their attention toward the aristocracy and the church. Voltaire used Candide to illustrate the foremost matters of the Enlightenment as well as criticize the movement itself. It criticizes the philosophy that rational thought can stop the pervasiveness of human evil. In Candide, Voltaire illustrates that society can and should be changed for the better. Beginning in Chapter I, Voltaire’s satire mocks the pretentiousness of the nobility. Candide’s benefactor and uncle, the Baron of Thunder-ten-trockh, is wasteful and served by others. His only justification for his status is “birth.” This character criticizes the
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Approximate Word count = 1742
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)
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