Voltaire resided in several locations in France and England during the 1700’s. It was during this time that he was witness to things such as: the Seven-Years’ War, the All Saints Day earthquake in Lisbon, the Spanish Inquisition, emergent philosophy of the Enlightenment, and much of the religious intolerance that was prevalent on the continent. Personal episodes and experiences such as these were the basis for his witticism. The lunacy involved in many of these major events constituted the bulk of what Candide satirized most.

The condemnation of all orders of organized religion is a fairly obvious motif throughout the book. Voltaire created several hypocritical religious figures more concerned with themselves than the masses or their religion. He created a pope with a bastard child and mocked the auto-de-fe’s that were being performed f

As far as ‘cultivate our garden’ goes, it stands to reason that he meant was that we could be content going through life attempting to change what we could for the better. It’s an instance of ‘God helps those who help themselves’. If a person affects small parts, eventually they will affect the whole. It is in this fashion that people can keep working towards that unattainable utopia.

or absurd reasons on people guilty of inconsequential behavior. Voltaire included several conflicts between and within the Muslim, Jesuit, and Jewish religions. The recurring examples of the havoc that religious intolerance created illustrate quite clearly the opinion Voltaire held concerning organized religion.

The absence of happiness is another recurring motif. Candide traipses all around the world and never finds anyone who is truly happy. In fact, everyone in the book, with the exception of Martin the pessimist, at some point thinks that he or she must be the most unfortunate person on earth. When Candide and Cacambo arrive in El Dorado it appears to be by far the best world that Voltaire has yet created, perhaps even a utopia. Problems are still present here too though. While the problems may not be as obvious as the ones elsewhere, rereading the chapter allows the subtle problems to be identified. Money exists creating the possibility of poverty, along with different social classes. The so-called ‘urchins’ have tattered clothing which is an indicator that they have been stricken by poverty. When Candide questions the old man about religion, he receives some rather fascist answers. “Can there be two religions? We have the same religion as everyone else. We worship only one god! There aren’t two gods, or three, or four.” These statements bring to mind something similar to intolerance. It appears as though Voltaire is saying that a utopia can’t exist.

The author cleverly meshes the plot with his threads of sarcasm throughout the story to illustrate his points. In fact, Voltaire was so successful in combining th

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