Candide
Candide, or Optimism (1759) written by Voltaire, the shining star of the French Enlightenment, is a biting, hilarious and frequently outrageous satire that pokes philosophical fun at -- of all things -- the doctrine of optimism. Candide is a nave youth stubbornly adhering to the notion that "all...
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Candide, or Optimism (1759) written by Voltaire, the shining star of the French Enlightenment, is a biting, hilarious and frequently outrageous satire that pokes philosophical fun at -- of all things -- the doctrine of optimism. Candide is a nave youth stubbornly adhering to the notion that "all is for the best in this, the best of all possible worlds," despite being cast into a flood of misfortunes and picaresque misadventures that take him around the world. Whether Candide and optimism itself emerges unscathed in the end, hinges upon his own deceptively simple words: "let us cultivate our garden."
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Format: hardcover
ISBN:
9780140622638 (0140622632)
Publisher: Penguin
Edition language: English
This is one of the few books I have completed reading in one sitting. That was when I was 14 and had developed a curiosity about Voltaire. I read my Mom's copy of 'Candide', which is bound in leather. 'Candide' was to me a book that evoked wonder and adventure. And for the highly imaginative teenage...
I listened to a fantastic audio version narrated perfectly by Jack Davenport. This is timeless, bold, black comedy that takes sharp aim at its 18th century targets: royal despots, class differences, gender, race, pointless optimism... It's fascinating how current so much of this is. Voltaire and Swi...
First of all, I have to say it's not a bad book. It's actually pretty good if you like that kind of writing. Unfortunately, I don't. I guess I started to read it with high expectations, because every review I read said the book was amazing and it as going to change my way to see the world. That di...
One of the few books I was forced to read in college that I LOVED!!!
What originally caught my attention with this book was that when I was wondering around Dymocks in Adelaide I discovered it in one of the cheap book buckets, and since it was slim, and cheap, I decided to buy it. I'm not really sure why I originally purchased it, maybe it had something to do with it...
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