Candide: Difference between revisions

Throughout ''Candide'', three different philosophies are presented: optomism, pessimism, and skeptism.  Pangloss is the character who embodies optomism. He states: " It is clear that things cannot be otherwise than they are, for since everything is made to serve and end, everything necessarliy serves the best end" (378). He also argues: "that there cannot possibly be an effect without a cause" meaning that everything in the world has a specific purpose and reason (378).  Martin, however, is the total opposite of Pangloss.  He only sees the worst of any situation due to the hardships he has faced. He has survived being robbed by his wife, beaten by his son, deserted by a daughter foolish enough to get kidnapped, and being fired from the modest job that provided his meager existance. At this point in his life, he has nothing to live for, and therefore, finds no joy in living. He states that "I have seen so many extraordinary things that nothing seems extraordinary anymore" (414). Cacambo is the skeptic.  His belief is somewhere in between that of Pangloss and Martin: "That is, Cacambo embodies the notion that one cannot know whether or not ultimate reality can be proven by reason" (Beck).  Cacambo has talents: " he had been choirboy, sacristan, sailor, monk, merchant, solider, and lackey" (398).  These talents have furthered his knowledge, and he has learned through personal expriences to take a more realistic view on life.