Literary+Movement

=Literary Movement =

//Candide, or Optimism// belongs to the literary movement of neoclassicism. This movement took place from 1660 to 1789, and Candide was published in 1758.

According to Ms. Weingartner's handout, the following are characteristics of a neoclassicist piece:
 * 1) Strong traditionalism of authors; distrust of radical innovations and immense respect for Greek and Roman writers as achieving supreme excellence
 * 2) Literature primarily "art:" innate talents of artist/writer prefected by long study and practive of established literary ideals; natural genius is a rarity
 * 3) Human beings as primary subject of literature; poetry as an imitation of human life; art for humanity's sake, in order to instruct and please readers
 * 4) Emphasis on representative characteristics and shared experiences (as well as thoughts, feelings, tastes) of all human beings; the primary aim of poetry is to give new and perfect expression to the great commonplaces of human wisdom
 * 5) The individual is a limited being who must set accessible goals; satiric attacks are aimed at humanity's pride in reaching beyond natural limits. The individual must willingly submit to (some) rules and conventions in subjects, structure, and diction

- //A Glossary of Literary Terms,// 5th ed. by editor M.H. Abrams

The most prominent way in which //Candide// is connected to these standards is the fifth characteristic in the list, "The individual is a limited being who must set accessible goals; satiric attacks are aimed at humanity's pride in reaching beyond natural limits. The individual must willingly submit to (some) rules and conventions in subjects, structure, and diction." According to Pangloss, the world of Candide and the other characters is the "best of all possible worlds," but this claim is entirely unreasonable. Being part of the best possible world is very unachievable for any of the characters because they are all surrounded by a great deal of turmoil. One way in which Candide refutes this, though, is at the very end of the story, where he has neither of the extreme views that his world is either the best or the worst of the possible worlds. Instead, when Pangloss says, "All events are linked in the best of all possible worlds," Candide replies, "That is well said...but we must cultivate our garden" (119). This metaphor shows that from gardening, Candide has learned that good things simply do not happen to people. Instead, bad events are what happen by change, but by "cultivat[ing their] garden," they can create goodness in life. This, as dictated by the characteristics of neoclassicism, shows that Candide realizes he is subject to the evil in the world, but he is able to work within his means to try to create happiness.

Another characteristic that is very prominent in //Candide// is the fourth: "Emphasis on representative characteristics and shared experiences (as well as thoughts, feelings, tastes) of all human beings; the primary aim of poetry is to give new and perfect expression to the great commonplaces of human wisdom." Voltaire uses horrible events, such as war, rape, and murder because in his time, these were very common occurrences, and many people would have been relatively familiar with the pain of these ideas (whether they had been connected to someone who experienced them, etc). They also demonstrate the brutality of everyday life.