Not the Best of All Possible Worlds

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In the midst of all of Voltaire's wit and absurdity, in the middle of chapter 10, Cunégonde says, "But I have been so horribly unhappy in my world so far, that my heart is almost sealed against hope." This is possibly the realest comment Voltaire makes outright. Throughout the first 15 chapters the characters (namely Candide and Pangloss) always emphasize that it is the best of all possible worlds even in the midst of terrible disasters. Candide asks what other worlds are like if this one was, in fact, the best of all possible worlds, but he hasn't lost his optimism or his faith in the world itself.

Cunégonde voices what we as the audience are all asking of the text: "in the midst of all of this tragedy--the death, the natural disasters--how can we remain hopeful that this is still the best of all possible worlds?" And as I thought of that question, I noticed the question applies to more than just Candide. We look around and see all of the destruction and despair and we stand in awe of the damage done. Just this month we have watched 3 hurricanes wreck homes and flood countries, 3 (or 4) earthquakes demolish cities, and there are missiles being shown off by enemy countries as well as countless other tragedies. We look around and can be so tempted to lose hope, and yet we do have hope in the midst of all of this! As followers of Christ, we know that this is NOT the best of all possible worlds, and because it isn't the best of all possible worlds, we take heart and rest in the hope that all of this shall pass and will one day be no more.

I commented on Faith and Zelda's posts.

Comments

  1. Phillip VoSeptember 25, 2017 at 9:44 PM

    I agree completely, especially with your last statement because as Christ followers, while it may be our duty to live for him and make the best of the imperfect world we live in, we know that one day Christ will come and restore what we corrupted by establishing a new heaven and earth. So to reason that this place of suffering, of tears and sadness, pain and sorrow, is FOR us rather than against us his foolish, and we can see where this reasoning eventually leaves Pangloss... (dead). Interesting how you connected the disasters in the book with the ones currently happening! I didn't even make that connection at all until I read it.

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  2. Ethan LafontSeptember 25, 2017 at 10:19 PM

    I feel like we have all been in the same place with Cunegonde before with that statement. ITs definitely something that someone says when they have lost hope. Thankful that we can be reminded of the hope and promise we have for the future life because of Jesus and his sacrifice for us. Its always nice to remember these things, thanks for sharing Natalie!!

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  3. Trey NorthcuttSeptember 26, 2017 at 12:03 AM

    That's a great assessment to make, because it is so true. As Christians, we always have to remind ourselves that this is not our home, but rather a temporary one. In the extreme weather our continent has been receiving recently, it's hard to see that. We feel such sympathy for those who have lost everything, but our hope has to still remain in Jesus. It didn't exactly dawn on me the parallels between the disasters both in the book and in the outside world, but it's such a perfect parallel to our world, and one has to wonder if in Voltaire's time, there were great disasters occurring around him.

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