![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() The main feature of Enlightenment philosophy is the belief that people can actively work to create a better world. The Age of Enlightenment is a term applied to a wide variety of ideas and advances in the fields of philosophy, science, and medicine. Though he was by no means a pessimist, Voltaire refused to believe that what happens is always for the best. “Candide anatomizes the world's potential for disaster and examines the corresponding human capacity for optimism,” (Bell 1). “Candide…is a profound attack on philosophical Optimism and, through it, all philosophical systems that claim falsely to justify the presence of evil in the world,” (Mason 1). Candide is Voltaire’s answer to what he saw as an absurd belief proposed by the Optimists. Throughout his travels, he adheres to the teachings of his tutor, Pangloss, believing that "all is for the best in the best of all possible worlds," (Voltaire 4). It is the story of a young man’s adventures throughout the world, where he witnesses evil and disaster. ![]() Candide is a humorous, far-fetched tale by Voltaire satirizing the optimism promoted by the philosophers of the Age of Enlightenment. ![]()
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