Blind Optimism vs. Dogmatic Pessimism: Is There a Better Choice?

This past week, we read and analyzed Candide, a French Novel revolving around the story of a young man named Candide and his journey through various spiraling adventures, surrounding by characters that either helped him or turned against him. Amongst these were Pangloss --- who acts as a philosopher and Candide's mentor/tutor. He is constantly offering ideas in moments of desperation or despair, putting on a positive mindset when Candide is feeling otherwise. However, through various moments throughout the book, Voltaire reveals how this philosophy that Pangloss preaches is the main satirical target of the novel, showing how his and other character's experiences seem to contract his beliefs.

For example, Voltaire writes about a scene where Candide and Pangloss have just gotten off a ship voyage and arrived at Lisbon, where there had been a terrible earthquake -- a seemingly disastrous calamity. However, even in these dire situations, Pangloss offers his blind optimism, saying, "[A]ll of this is for the very best end, for if there is a volcano at Lisbon, it could be in no other spot; for it is impossible but things should be as they are" --- claiming that everything that happens is for the best. In a way, his reasoning relies on what is known as circular reasoning. The volcanic eruption had occured in a place none other than Lisbon ---- meaning that Lisbon was the place where it was destined to be, and it was the for the best. This can come across as insenitive, and portrays Pangloss's beliefs as disillusioning -- and there are various other scenes to prove this.  Another example is when Pangloss is talking to Candide about Cunegonde saying, " “All events are linked together in the best of all possible worlds, for, after all, if you had not been kicked out of a fine castle for your love of Miss Cunégonde . . . then you wouldn’t be here eating preserved citrons and pistachio-nuts.” Through this statement, Voltaire depicts Pangloss ludricrous connections to contrasting ideas -- satirizing the gaps present in optimistic philosophy.

A direct foil to Pangloss is Martin, another character that Candide encounters in his journey to attain his goal. Through the novel, Martin is portrayed as having the exact opposite ideals as Pangloss, constantly personifying as a pessimistic character. For example, between a conversation with him and Candide, he says, “‘But for what end, then, has this world been formed?’ said Candide. "To plague us to death,’ answered Martin". Through this, readers can see how Martin is constantly preaching a philosophy shaped by his own experiences of suffering, and potentially presents even good things as bad. However, his ideas can come across as dogmatic, as he follows pessimistic ideas that allow for no exceptions and are based on dogmatic assertions rather than authentic evidence to back his ideals. His philisophy hinders the idea of any improvement to world as the world has been formed to "plague us to death" anyway. Through this, Martin's ideas are a direct contrast to Pangloss's views.

So which one to choose to live your life by? Well, both have their negative sides to them. Pangloss's ideas can appear falsely optimistic in certain situations, rather than facing the true reality of things. However, Martin's ideas prevent the idea of any true growth in the world. So what to do? Well, this was the exact dilemma Candide faced in his journey. In the end, he ended up saying that you have to cultivate your own garden --- that hard work and practicality is the only way to live life, rather than submitting to a philosophy that determines all your ideas and decisions. I guess this is the only time we should listen to Candide --- he sort of makes sense here!

Prisha