
Growth can be a slow and tedious process. Voltaire’s “Candide” is not just a satirical commentary on humanity, but a piece that can be interpreted as a story of change and progress. Throughout the piece the main character, Candide, is faced with the numerous challenges. These events force Candide to reevaluate his life and change his perspective on reality. The beauty of “Candide” is its accessibility. It is an easy story to read with deep meanings hidden within.
One message Voltaire conveys in his piece is the importance of self improvement. If you wish to see change in this world, you must first seek it within yourself. Candide figures this to be true only at the end of the novel, after breaking out of philosophical prison he was brought into by Pangloss, his childhood tutor. Finally after all the misfortunes and mishaps, Candide began to think for himself, and therefore he decided to make his own decision to cultivate a farm, and to live off the land. No longer a slave to someone else’s logic, Voltaire leaves us hoping that we too, will make our own decisions, and live according our own philosophy, not one given to us by someone else.