“Men,” he said, “must, in some things, deviate from their original innocence; for they are not born wolves, yet they care for each other like those beasts of prey. God never gave them twenty-four pounds or bayonets, yet they made cannons and bayonets to destroy each other" (10). Thus begins the philosophy of Voltaire's Candide, a subversive text published in 1759 for which the author was imprisoned in Basille While there is some hope for the human race in Candide, the superficiality of love and the cruelty of human nature are revealed through representations of material beauty, wealth and violence with the effect of devaluing philosophical optimism plagiarize a custom essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get the original essay Candide is ultimately pessimistic in its portrayal of human nature, but the defense of free will in the text, as well as the fact that it is a satire, offer a more optimistic perspective. The idea that Voltaire's criticism can inspire action in his readers involves the belief that human beings can make the right choices by encouraging people to change the world themselves instead of blaming the war. and violence on predestination and religion; There is also a favorable view of human beings in the resilience of the characters throughout the text, including the old woman, who confides that she has thought about suicide hundreds of times, but continues to "persist in carrying a burden from which we long to be relieved." ?” (30). The old man nurses Candide back to health, as does Pangloss' barber later in the text. These acts are evidence that humans care for each other, in contrast to the pain humans have caused each other. Finally, Voltaire presents El Dorado, a land that symbolizes material wealth. Ironically, his utopian society is peaceful and cultured, uncorrupted and non-greedy (50). The fact that the protagonist, Candide, abandons El Dorado to pursue the love of his life, Cunegonde, is significant because it shows that he is abandoning material wealth for love. However, Candide's motivations in finding Cunegonde are not purely amorous. Candide falls more in love with her material beauty than her personality, starting a theme of objectification and negative attitudes towards female characters. Cunegonde is described primarily in terms of her body, "seventeen years old, ... rosy-cheeked, fresh, plump, and tempting" (1). Later, as she speaks to him, “he seemed to continually devour her with his eyes” (17). He cheats on her with another, more beautiful woman. And inevitably, he resents her ugliness, her "bleary eyes, ... withered neck, wrinkled face and arms," ​​(87), marrying her anyway because he feels morally obligated. Emphasizing material beauty to devalue the relationship between Candide and Cunegonde, which drives much of the plot, shows a negative view of human nature as well as the sincerity of love. Material wealth is another motif used throughout the text to reveal the superficiality of human nature. Wealth changes how people treat Candide; as a poor man he is enslaved and sent away in times of need, as when he is sent away by the "charitable" Protestant preacher. But being a wealthy man, "he soon found himself between two doctors, whom he had not called, (and) a number of intimate friends whom he had never seen" (63). Not only do many people make his acquaintance to get money, but he is the victim of numerous robberies, including an elaborate scene in which someone pretends to be Cunegonde. Likewise, Candide is exploited by both Paquette and the friar.