One of the most common struggles that every person on this globe faces is figuring out who they are, finding their ‘self’. This is a stage that often occurs more than once in your lifetime and can sometimes last relatively long. It is not easy to find yourself and to create a life based around that self. Often times, the individuals that have the hardest time with discovering themselves are college students. When experiencing doubt and despair, one might look up to a guiding figure, such as a parent, professor, or mentor. If one is feeling up to it, they may even look toward a philosopher. Regardless of the decade or the philosopher, many scholars have spent time working on their own self and have shared their experience with the audience. Endless amounts of individuals from De Beauvoir, Descartes, Sartre, and Voltaire have discussed various views on the self and the stages that human beings go through on the path of life. In discussing their independent views on the self, we can understand the importance of constructing our own identity through the works of Sartre and Voltaire. Jean-Paul Sartre was a philosopher in the 1940s. At that time, he wrote his renowned book Existentialism is a Humanism. One of the most important concepts that came from this book is the idea …show more content…
Voltaire’s famous work is Candide. While Candide speaks about a great deal of topics, one of the most important is his idea of “cultivating our garden”. By this phrase, he simply means that you must tend to your garden in order to better yourself. Rather similar to the ideas that Sartre has put forth, Voltaire believes it is important to live for yourself. This viewpoint can be very closely compared to Sartre as Voltaire believes you cannot put your life in another person’s hands, you must give meaning to your life yourself; moreover, Sartre states that each person is in charge of constructing their own
Bottiglia, William. "Candide's Garden." Voltaire: A Collection of Critical Essays. New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1968.
Bottiglia, William. "Candide's Garden." Voltaire: A Collection of Critical Essays. New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1968.
...reflected critically on the events of his life—even just the two examples used in this essay--, he would probably find that this is not the best of all possible worlds as it is rife with evil and suffering. With this novella, Voltaire made the point that some spend a lifetime justifying—not rationalizing—the events of the world because those same people are too busy attempting to prove one theory rather than develop others that may fit reality more. When Candide dismisses Pangloss at the end of the novella by saying, “Let us cultivate our garden,” he is rejecting Pangloss’ philosophy, turning over a new leaf, and taking charge of his own life and giving it its own meaning free of Pangloss’ influence.
Voltaire had a very opposite point of view in that he saw a world of needless pain and suffering all around him. Voltaire, a deist, believed that God created the world, yet he felt that the people were living in a situation that was anything but perfect. Thus, the major theme of Candide is one of the world not being the best of all possibilities, full of actions definitely not determined by reason or order, but by chance and coincidence.
... former ideals, though exclaims not to turn against them. Regardless of the philosophical squabbling Candide “asserted nothing” (Voltaire, Candide, 96). I believe this to be the final indication of where Voltaire places his philosophical value. Candide’s final phrase in the end of the novel, I believe, to be an indicator that neither Optimism nor Pessimism is entirely valid in the world. Candide’s final philosophy lays in the middle ground, a rather stoic stance on life. Not focusing on the terrible but also not being naïve to suggest that all is well in the world. Gardening, thus, becomes a metaphor by Voltaire of by centering life on what one can control, he is accepting the world’s obvious horrors but, equally, will not allow it to sway his life.
Voltaire's masterpiece Candide recounts the journey of a young man as he ventures the world and faces reality, deals with it, is guided, transformed, and eventually defined by it. Voltaire's story tells the tale of Candide as his character matures from the naivete of a child to the extensive temperament of a distinguished man.
Overall Voltaire is successful in promoting his ideas and beliefs. It is clear he wants to see a drastic change in religion, politics and morals in the pre-modern period. Throughout his novel Candide he is able to criticise society with a light hearted mockery but also with a seriousness using extreme examples to address his points and concerns. It is arguable that his ambitions were far too high at a time of hope and debate in the 18th century.
For centuries, many stories have been told about the war and sexual relationships with non-humans, such as the Trojan War, Hercules, and some mythological creatures such as the centaur. Before the twentieth century, all wars that happened were primitive which did not have any modern weapons such as the air force or tanks. Moreover, Voltaire, the fearless writer from French (Voltaire 98), although he lived at the end of the seventeenth century and the first half of the eighteenth, wrote some incredible stories in an era where liberal people have one place to reside solely in the jail. Besides, Voltaire was the lead writer of the French Revolution and has become a symbol of all revolutionaries. To write
Bottiglia, William. "Candide's Garden." Voltaire: A Collection of Critical Essays. New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1968.
On November 24, 1694, Voltaire was born François-Marie Arouet to an upper middle-class family in Paris, France. Throughout his life, Voltaire wrote numerous philosophical works including poems, plays, and books. Next to Montesquieu, Locke, Rousseau and others, Voltaire is known as one of the greatest French Enlightenment writers. His works, and the works of other Enlightenment writers, influenced both the French and the American revolutions.
It is only natural for humans to question why we have been put on this wonderful earth of ours. What does it mean to be these lucky ones called humans? Do we really have a human nature that is all our own? Are there really living beings that kind find something within this world to call our life purpose? And if there are, how do may we achieve it? It is happiness or simple the drive to survive that propel us forward? These are just some of the types of questions that philosophers have been wrestling with for centuries. Some argue that human nature is very much a real thing and that it is essential to living a happy fulfilled life, while others reject that idea completely. However, despite the completely opposite stances that philosophers can take when it comes to human nature, it’s not uncommon to see some surprising similarities between those who support it, and those who do not. One of the biggest examples of this, would be in regards to the Aristotle and his books on Nicomachean Ethics and Sartre with his writing of Existentialism Is a Humanism. When it comes to these two philosophers in particular it would appear on the surface that they are nothing alike. Aristotle being quite the supporter of human nature and it’s ability to give humans fulfilling lives, and Sartre who rejects the human nature completely for the idea that we as humans are essentially just going through life and making choices. Having said this, I would now like to discuss the individual views and arguments that both men have in regards to their views on human nature, it’s relationship to purpose, free will, and politics, and show that within these both Aristotle and Sartre give us the ability to see, that maybe to a certain that we are in fact responsible fo...
To begin with, it is important to state that Voltaire's book is not about one specific thing or the other, the book is about life in general. This becomes apparent when Pangloss talks to Candide about cultivating his garden, he said, “for when man was put into the garden of Eden, it was with an intent to dress it; and this proves that man was not born to be idle”, to that statement Martin responds “Work then without disputing ... it is the only way to render life supportable.” (30). What Voltaire was trying to say is that maybe it is impossible to be truly happy, but the only way for people to be contempt is to work. Voltaire understood that if there is happiness in this world it will only come from the fruits of our labor.
Existentialism is a philosophical theory or approach that emphasizes the existence of the individual person as a free and responsible agent determining his or her own development through acts of the will. To Sartre, saying that som...
Sartre, Jean-Paul. “Existentialism is Humanism.” Existentialism from Dostoevsky to Sartre. Ed. Walter Kaufman. Meridian Publishing
Sartre, Jean-Paul. “Existentialism is Humanism.” Existentialism from Dostoevsky to Sartre. Ed. Walter Kaufman. Meridian Publishing