So this weekend while browsing Half Priced Books (whose actual half price book section is great for satisfying my compulsion to buy books, but without spending much - up yours, Barnes and Noble!) I came upon a shocking discovery - Voltaire wrote fiction. Candide is a story! Who knew? I had always assumed Voltaire was a philosopher, and his writing was as convoluted as most philosophic writing of that time. Because yes, I am a product of the public school system.
So I dropped $1.50 for the chance to read this classic of French literature and the Western cannon.
It's a short book, clocking in at a fast 144 pages. I read it Sunday afternoon. The first thing I was happy to note was what an entertaining read it was. The writing is crystal clear, and you understand everything that's going on. Not bad for a book written almost 250 years ago.
So I'm entertained while being simultaneously horrified at all the terrible things happening to the characters of the books, and the miraculous way many of these characters manage to reappear after being left for dead. Murder, 'ravishing', the Spanish Inquisition, slavery - these people are hardcore survivors, however serially unlucky. Throughout all of this, the characters talk about why bad things happen to - good and bad - people, whether they had it coming or not.
Candide is supposed to be satire, and ridicules some of the optimistic philosophy of Voltaire's day. (Or so I've read.) Being the author, he sets up some of the representative characters as straw men, which he knocks down over and over. Which, to me, it's not that hard to have an argument with yourself, when you already know your conclusion. But this was probably the least resonant part of the book for me anyway, being the product of a different time.
Three elements did stand out to me: El Dorado, the pamphleteer and 'happy man' Candide dines with in Venice, and the conclusion. El Dorado is an isolated Shangri-la Candide comes upon accidentally, where the streets are literally paved with gold, which has no monetary value. There is no judicial system, but an enormous government-funded bureau for science. Dinner at the inn is free, and Candide stays at the king's palace for a month. Voltaire notes that Candide is happy there, but wants to leave. It's a little annoying that Voltaire doesn't bother to outline how it is these people pay for everything, or why everyone gets along so well they don't need a judicial system. But ultimately Candide is more interested in taking the gold and jewels of El Dorado back to the world with him where he might be ridiculously rich, rather than just another citizen as he would if he remained at El Dorado. On the other hand, El Dorado apparently has an abundance of every physical need a person might have, which is unrealistic to me when compared with the real world, where everyone is competing for limited (or at least what is assumed to be limited) resources. So I think that lessens the impact El Dorado might have had.
[New thought - perhaps Voltaire's point is that the cause of evil among people is the competition for limited resources. Evil in nature, like floods and earthquakes, are another story.]
Second was the pamphleteer and happy man of Venice, both of whom spend the majority of their time bitching about how every play, book, etc. ever created is total crap. Candide is impressed by their judgments which make them appear superior to the plebes who actually like, say, Homer. (Which I don't, by the way.) But Martin, Candide's mentor, notes that 'the best stomachs are not those that reject all food,' pardon the misquoting. I'm guilty of some of this elitist snobbery myself, so I thought that was pretty interesting. Also good to know that elitist snobbery is nothing new.
Finally, the conclusion, which closely mirrors a conclusion about life in general I've been finding is true a lot lately. The characters end up on a farm near Constantinople, with no more riches. Cunegarde, Candide's big 'prize' (nevermind the sexism, eh?) is now ugly and unpleasant. Everything sort of sucks, and basically that is where they end. But, everyone finds something they're really good at, and do it for the good of the rest of the people on the farm. When they go to a 'great' philosopher nearby, they are told to shut up and stop asking questions, because they're totally insignificant. And Candide finally ends the philosophic debate, saying 'it's time to work in the garden'. It reminds me of a line in the Tao Te Ching: "Do your work, then step back. The only path to serenity."
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