English Articles for Candide

Jessica Pasquariello 10/9/09
English – Mod 5

Kissing Cousins
In Westphalia, at the magnificent castle of Baron Thunder-ten-tronckh, the Baroness, Cungonde, was caught kissing a lower-class male. The male, Candide, was the son of the Baron’s sister, meaning he is the Baron’s nephew and Cunegonde’s cousin. Candide was an illegitimate child however, and has been considered low class since birth.
The royal family was unpleased to see the two together. They would never allow Cunegonde to be with a person from a lower class. Once Candide and Cunegonde were caught, Cunegonde was punished by a slap in the face, and Candide was kicked out of the castle for good. Where Candide is now, no one knows. No one cares either, except Cunegonde. As long as the Baron is alive, she will never see Candide again.

Life of the Bulgarian Soldier
I spoke with a young man who calls himself Candide and was in the battle with the Bulgars and Abares. This is the same Candide who was kicked out of the Baron’s castle not too long before the Bulgars made an attack there. As you may already know, the Bulgars have a strict and violent army, which puts fear into the hearts of the
unfortunate men dragged into it, like Candide. When forced into their army, they must first master the army drill, and the better they perform, the less they are beaten. Candide,
luckily, learned the drill quickly. But he became very unlucky when he went for a walk. Bulgars must also know the whereabouts of every soldier. If one is absent without permission, they are greatly offended. The soldier must then choose his punishment, “run the gauntlet” (means to get beaten by the whole regiment) thirty-six times, or take twelve bullets to the head. Candide chose to run the gauntlet, and his wounds healed in time for the battle.
Candide quotes as he recalls the bloodshed of thousands, "Nothing could be smarter, more splendid, more brilliant, better drawn up than two armies. Trumpets, fifes, hautboys, drums, cannons, formed a harmony such as never been heard in hell.” The experience in their army was very brutal for him and informative to our paper. I was grateful that Candide shared his experience. He said he is aware of the attack on the Baron's family, and was very unhappy with this piece of news, of course. Where Candide is going now will remain a mystery.

Candide Returns For the Last Time
We found out that Candide has settled down with his wife and friends on a little
farm. As he wished, Candide finally married Cunegonde. But he unpleased with his marriage due to the fact that Cunegonde's appearance is unsightly. According to Candide, she has been getting uglier every day. She lost her beauty during her time serving as slave
to Don Fernando. Candide purchased Cunegonde to free her from Don Fernando, and he
also bought the farm and an old woman that he befriended earlier in his adventure. Her brother, the young Baron, was brought back to the galleys so he could finish his time. Candide's loyal valet, Cacambo is the only one who works. After his long journey of many ups and downs, Candide and everyone else is now living bored.



Works Cited

http://www.pinkmonkey.com/booknotes/barrons/candide3.asp
http://classiclit.about.com/od/candidevoltaire/a/aa_candidequote.htm

Candide Comment

Candide has killed a thrid person so far, Cunegonde's brother, who was furious to hear that Candide was going to marry Cunegonde. Candide has traveled through many areas in Europe. He was also in Eldorado, where no one is perscuted for religious beliefs. Martin is definitely not optimistic as Pangloss was. He always points out the evil because he believes that evil dominates the world. Candide was tricked in a card game, in which he lost a lot of his money. He also gave diamonds to his lovely "Cunegonde," and to the two officers who arrseted him and Cacambo. With Cacambo, he has a loyal valet by his side as they are sent back to England from Paris.