CANDIDE – VOLTAIRE
General Thoughts & Comments:
-The pace of the story moves along pretty quickly and the title of each chapter more often than not, gives away the ending of the chapter (it’s like a mini spoiler). Not too much description is given regarding the scenery or event but you can still understand the flowing of the story, especially with the character’s dialogues.
-I made a note of the fact that the Baroness “boxed her ears” – I didn’t know what that meant & I had to stop and Google it. I found various definitions for that term ranging from destroying balance and eardrums to creating massive wave of great pain. I guess that was Miss Cunegund’s form of punishment. I don’t know much about the 1750’s traditions or regulations about marriage but since Candide and Miss Cunegund was punished for an “innocent” kiss, I was brought to believe that this family does not condone incest. It took me by surprise a little bit, because with the little knowledge that I have about interfamily relationships in history, especially with the Eastern world, people did not care about incest and actually promote and encourage it. It was seen most often in China where royalties would like the crown/title to be in the same bloodline and therefore, brothers, sisters and cousins were forced to marry each other to preserve their position in the royal court.
-Another word I had to look up is consternation, which means alarming amazement or dismay
-I was a bit confused when the generous men who treated Candide to a meal suddenly cuffed him and brought him in to be tortured. Was it because of his ignorance regarding the King?
-While reading about the spoils of war, the descriptions were extremely vivid and detailed, to the point where I could actually visualize it. The author made no point to sugarcoat it or skim past the imagery, and it was not until I read further into the reading that I realized that “ripped or torn open” actually meant rape. I thought that the bodies were actually ripped in half or cut into pieces, but seeing how Miss Cunegund survived, Pangloss was actually referring to her legs that were forced open.
-I also noticed a repetition of events in the form of characters conveniently arriving at the scene, with phrases similar to “blank just happened to be nearby” or “just at that moment blank…” which was seen most notably with the Baron in the middle of Candide & Miss Cunegund’s kiss, and with Miss Cunegund’s two lovers intruding her conversations with Candide. When I think about this in the form of a movie or play, I can see the intruding characters as a plot twist like an “uh-oh” when they step in, but when it’s in the form of writing, it seems a bit amateurish because the author did not build the plot enough for someone to just drop in – I just feel like it seems too convenient and too overplayed in this story
-As of now, Anabaptist James is my favorite character and the most generous and genuine man in the story. However, one of the things that really angers me about his character is that he’s too nice and I am extremely aggravated by his death. He’s too nice to the point where he lets someone take advantage of his niceness and allows himself to be thrown overboard…?! To that point, he was foolish enough to try to save the man who just injured him… why?? In life, having a big heart isn’t enough, you also need to have a big enough brain to care about yourself, to prioritize yourself and to know when others do not deserve your attention or time. I’ve seen a lot of characters in readings and shows that are too idiotically nice like James and I’ve been able to see them progress and grow, and learn that not everyone deserves their help. They were able to see when they were being taken advantage of, when their help isn’t necessary or appreciated, and just learn that life isn’t always about helping others – you have to learn to help yourself too. In this case, I wasn’t able to see James grow, instead, he was left helpless, drowning and left to die!! I just witnessed a great, generous, compassionate man thrown overboard by this despicable character and that has upset me greatly.
-Moving on, the character that I wished to see James grow into, I can see a little in Candide. I was proud of Candide when he thrusts his knife into the two lovers in the house because there was no better way to resolve things, and I like to see that the main character has the guts and strength to move on in life. He did what he had to do and I am supportive of his actions.
-I definitely took notice of how the perspective and narrator in each chapter changes without notice, and the author was very wise in doing so without having to declare it beforehand by starting the paragraph with imminent details that we already know about the character. For instance, in Chapter 15, the chapter started with the narrator’s grief about the death of his parents and ravishing of his sister, and with that information, the author made it obvious that the narrator is Miss Cunegund’s brother.
-Upon reaching the last chapters of the reading, I am overwhelmed by the various philosophies explored in these chapters. I am an optimistic person and would like to remain an optimistic person, therefore, I did not pay much attention to the other philosophies that strayed from positivity, most notably, I did not think too much of Martin’s comments. Yes, he’s seen the worst in life but I feel that it could have been avoided and if anything, it all happened to him for the better because he’s met Candide now and he’s been able to go on an adventure to help him reclaim his loved one. With that said, I don’t care to think too much about the negative things that has happened in this book, especially since Candide, Pangloss, Martin, Cacambo, Cunegund and the old woman were able to make it out of the miserable lives they were in and have their little farm house and garden! Compared to the hardships that they endured before, their simple life right now seems like a blessing, and a happy ending to this negative story. I’d just like to add that how Pangloss and the Baron had miraculously stayed alive after their misfortunes seem a little farfetched and if anything, why was James not allowed to have the same fate as them and allowed to be rescued by Candide?!
– This story overall kept me intrigued but is generally not what I enjoy reading and kept me outside of my comfort zone.