"Candide" 1937 VOLTAIRE, Arouet De

"Candide" 1937 VOLTAIRE, Arouet DeVOLTAIRE, Arouet de [112] pp. Halcyon House 1937 11" x 7 1 2" Illustrated by Rockwell Kent *jacket separated between cover and spine* Candide, ou l'Optimisme is a French satire written by Voltaire, a philosopher of the Age of Enlightenment, first published in 1759. The novella has been widely translated, with English versions titled Candide: or, All for the Best (1759); Candide: or, The Optimist (1762); and Candide: Optimism (1947). A young man,

VOLTAIRE, Arouet de

[112] pp.

Halcyon House

1937

11" x 7 1/2"

Illustrated by Rockwell Kent

*jacket separated between cover and spine*

Candide, ou l'Optimisme is a French satire written by Voltaire, a philosopher of the Age of Enlightenment, first published in 1759. The novella has been widely translated, with English versions titled Candide: or, All for the Best (1759); Candide: or, The Optimist (1762); and Candide: Optimism (1947). A young man, Candide, lives a sheltered life in an Edenic paradise, being indoctrinated with Leibnizian optimism by his mentor, Professor Pangloss. This lifestyle is abruptly ended, followed by Candide's slow and painful disillusionment as he witnesses and experiences great hardships in the world. Voltaire concludes Candide with, if not rejecting Leibnizian optimism outright, advocating a deeply practical precept, "we must cultivate our garden", in lieu of the Leibnizian mantra of Pangloss, "all is for the best" in the "best of all possible worlds".