Juxtaposition Of The Relationship Between Candide And Martin

Voltaire, a French author and philosopher during the Enlightenment, published many works throughout his life. Candide, published in 1759, was one of his minor works at the time, yet is now widely known for its satirical perspective on eighteenth century life and philosophical merits. The work follows Candide, the French word for “innocent”, on a journey that is filled with one hyperbolic misfortune after another. Despite these misfortunes, Candide remains true to his name, which is directly contrasted to the character of Martin. During one encounter, Candide calls Martin a “bitter man,” to which Martin responds, “that’s because I have seen the world” (Voltaire 104). Voltaire uses the juxtaposition of Candide and Martin’s worldviews to satirize

the philosophy of optimism.
Candide spent the early years of his life being sheltered in the castle of the baron of Thunder-ten-tronckh with minimal exposure to the outside world. This sheltering, in addition to the optimism taught to him by his tutor Pangloss, instilled a sense of naiveté that is made evident throughout Candide. Candide is described as having a “face [that] was the true index of his mind. He has solid judgment joined to the most unaffected simplicity” (Voltaire 11). The initial description of Candide portrays him as an innocent; the diction of “unaffected” clearly implies his inexperience with the world, an inexperience that is made evident upon his removal from the castle.
After being banished from the castle by the baron Thunder-ten-tronckh, Candide found himself in the company of Bulgar soldiers (Voltaire 14).

The juxtaposition of their characters – Candide as an innocent youth, and the soldiers as savages – further reveals how little experience Candide has with reality. His choice to neither be put to death nor run the gauntlet as a punishment (Voltaire 15) epitomizes his lack of experience with the real world. The majority of Candide’s interactions up to this point had been with the philosophical Pangloss, who would have accepted Candide’s response. However, Candide’s optimism in the face of two hard choices is ridiculed, and he chooses life over

death.
Despite befalling several more misfortunes, Candide finds himself reunited with his love, Cunégonde, and her maid, and sets a course for Paraguay. On their journey, they are robbed of all valuables, yet Candide exclaims, “the goods of the world are common to all men, and that every one has an equal right to the enjoyment of them” (Voltaire 39). Rather than lamenting the loss of his money, Candide is more concerned with the fact that his robber did not leave him with sufficient funds to complete his journey. This again shows how idyllic Candide mistakenly believes the world to be. The obviously satirical tone used by Voltaire reveals his thoughts on human nature and the concept of human decency, which he believes to be utopian ideals that do not exist.
Once their voyage is underway, Cunégonde begins complaining about her hardships to Candide and the old woman. The old woman scolds her, saying that her life has been even worse and begins to tell the story of her life (Voltaire 40). After recounting her tragic life story, the old woman says, “I have a great deal of knowledge and experience in the world … ask each passenger to tell his story, and if there is one of them all who has not cursed his existence many times … I give you permission to throw me head- first into the sea” (Voltaire 50). Like Candide, the old woman is still able to maintain a positive outlook on life despite enduring many hardships. The extent of her misfortune, aside from being exaggerated by Voltaire to further satirize the work, provides context for Candide’s optimism. If an old woman who has experienced nothing but suffering and deceit since childhood can still be happy, obviously a young man can maintain an optimistic view on life.
Candide’s optimistic nature is truly put to the test shortly after their arrival in the New World.

Candide is reunited with Cunégonde’s brother, but stabs him after he is told that he does not have permission to marry Cunégonde (Voltaire 60). Rather than feeling remorse for his actions, which ironically helped save him from an indigenous tribe, Candide claims that, “if [he] had not had the good luck to run [his] sword up to the hilt in the body of Miss Cunégonde’s brother, [he] would definitely have been eaten alive. But, after all, pure nature is an excellent thing; since these people, instead of eating [him], showed [him] a thousand civilities as soon as they knew [he] was not a Jesuit” (Voltaire 65). In addition to criticizing religion, this quotation from Candide affirms his lack of knowledge and experience. The diction of “luck” when referring to the murder of a childhood friend and the brother of his love shows that Candide does not have the capacity for negative thoughts. He also attributes this luck to nature, not himself, meaning he has very little accountability for his actions. These observations, in conjunction with each other, characterize Candide as more than just an optimist; he has the intelligence and maturity level of a child, meaning he has not progressed or evolved since the moment he was banished by the baron

Thunder-ten-tronckh.
While Candide’s optimism is not tarnished by his life experiences, he is aware that his life has not been perfect. In El Dorado, he states, “possibly this is that part of the globe where everything is right, for there must certainly be some such place. And for all that Master Pangloss said on the matter, I often perceived that things went very badly in Westphalia” (Voltaire 69). Despite constantly defending Pangloss’s theory that everything is for the best in the world throughout the work, Candide at least has the capacity to realize that life could be better. Thus, it is absurd that Candide is unhappy at El Dorado, and decides to leave with as much treasure as he can take, and reunite with Cunégonde (Voltaire 73). Perhaps it is Candide’s optimistic lifestyle that caused him to believe that he could find a happier life after leaving. Candide’s inability to find happiness in a utopia is Voltaire’s criticism on the civilized man’s inability to find satisfaction with life.
The introduction of Martin to Candide’s life comes after Vanderdendur steals the majority of his wealth, which threw Candide into a “deep melancholy” (Voltaire 79). However, on their journey to Bordeaux, they pass the sinking ship belonging to Vanderdendur, and Candide’s pessimistic view is short-lived. To the contrary, Martin mourns the unnecessary loss of the lives of the other sailors, claiming, “God has punished the knave, and the devil has drowned the rest” (Voltaire 83). The juxtaposition of Candide’s cheerfulness at the loss of life and Martin’s pragmatism in reference to the additional live lost establishes the differences in their characters. Martin, the more experienced man, chooses to focus on the deaths of the innocents, while Candide, the more childlike one, fixates on his vindication. Their differing reactions reveal Voltaire’s