Voltaire is slightly confusing me. A lot of what he is writing is humorous in its own odd way, but I'm not really sure where he is aiming yet. I can't tell if he is scorning philosophy (such as with Pangloss), or if he is exalting it. Perhaps he is saying that yes, philosophy has some worth, but ultimately life is going to throw things at us, and we should LIVE it, rather than just philosophize about it. Poor Candide constantly strives to live by his philosophy, but ultimately it seems to do nothing but hurt him.
Then again, it is the philosophers that end up surviving against ALL odds. But usually their survival is do to a physical solution rather than a philosophical one. Physical means seem to always rescue them from the problems their philosophies seem to always cause. We shall see...
Comments on Abbie George :)
I see what you mean about the philosophers and how their thoughts seem to cause trouble. Socrates, for example, was executed because his philosophy was stirring up trouble. T
ReplyDeleteI was wondering the same as I read...what is his point? It's extremely entertaining and makes many good points in certain spots, but what is the big picture?
ReplyDelete