An Essay on Man Summary Text

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That's why we have been in business so long with many happy customers to show for it. If you want our help today, just register with us online and then fill in the order form. In no time at all, one of our writers with an advanced degree in your essay's topic will begin to craft you a superbly written academic paper. Take that initial first step with our services at today and you'll be pleased with the results! the story begins in westphalia at the castle of the high and mighty baron of thunder ten tronckh, his three hundred fifty pound wife, their beautiful young daughter cun gonde, and an unnamed son. Living happily at the castle is candide, whose name points to his character mdash that of one who is simple of mind and adds voltaire ironically sound of judgement. Prominent in the baron's menage is the tutor, doctor pangloss, a man revered as a profound and learned philosopher, pangloss firmly believed and taught that everything in the world was necessarily for the best end: it was all a matter of recognizing the sufficient reason and accepting the logic of cause and effect.

If candide had had his wish, he would have first chosen to be the powerful baron, second the lovely cun gonde, and third the wise pangloss. The story begins in westphalia at the castle of the high and mighty baron of thunder ten tronckh, his three hundred fifty pound wife, their beautiful young daughter cun xe9 gonde, and an unnamed son. Living happily at the castle is candide, whose name points to his character that of one who is simple of mind and adds voltaire ironically sound of judgement. If candide had had his wish, he would have first chosen to be the powerful baron, second the lovely cun xe9 gonde, and third the wise pangloss. The significant incident in this first chapter involves pangloss' illicit relations with a still unnamed chambermaid. Cun xe9 gonde herself witnessed with great interest the act, which took place in a little wood on her father's estate.

So intrigued was she with this lesson in experimental physics and the demonstration of sufficient reason involving cause and effect that she was determined to experiment herself with the cooperation of candide. The opportunity presented itself when the two found themselves behind a screen, but the baron discovered them. Cun xe9 gonde received a slap on the face, but poor candide was literally kicked out of the castle. It has been held that the pompous baron of thunder ten tronckh is one of the representations of frederick the great, with whom voltaire had such close relations for so long a time. Later, as we shall see, it is the baron's son who appears to be identified as the prussian ruler. Here the original identification is justified in view of the fact that the son is said to be very much like his father. He is always addressed as my lord all those who serve him laugh appreciably at his stories.

Among the more ingenious theories is that candide to some extent represents voltaire here, as he does elsewhere in the tale from time to time. The frenchman is said to have suspected that he was illegitimate, and he began life sufficiently optimistic and satisfied with the world. It has further been suggested that the fair cun xe9 gonde is none other than mme. And it has been said that the cun xe9 gonde candide affair represents the common passion of frederick's sister for baron trenck.

The name of the oracle of the baron's castle, pangloss, derives from the greek and means all tongues. It may be added that nigology, part of the title of pangloss' impressive subject matter, may very well derive from the french nigaud, which means booby. Whereas the main target of voltaire's attack remains the optimistic philosophy which held that all is for the best, he did not neglect to satirize other things, including excessive pride and the essential littleness of humanity. Thus, according to rumor, the baron's sister refused to marry her lover, who had only seventy one divisions on his coat of arms indicating the degrees of nobility. Actually the maximum number that an aristocrat could possess was much less than this. And what of the baron himself? a measure of his greatness was that his castle had a door and a window, and a piece of tapestry hung on the wall of his great hall. One is reminded of swift's lilliputian emperor, who was taller by the length of a thumbnail than any of his subjects.

The subtitle of the fourth epistle is on the nature and state of man, with respect to happiness and depicts man’s various attempts to achieve true human happiness. Here is a section by section explanation of the fourth epistle: introduction 1 18: the introduction identifies happiness as man’s ultimate aim and establishes man’s search for happiness as the theme of the fourth epistle. Section i 19 28: section i enumerates the popular and philosophical false notions of happiness. Section ii 29 92: section ii suggests that happiness is man’s end and that it can be attained by all.

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Happiness is therefore equal which means that it must also be social since, as pope establishes in the third epistle, man is governed by general, not specific laws. Because happiness is social, it is necessary for the order, peace, and welfare of society. Section i 93 110: section i shows that the happiness of individuals is in accordance with god’s greater plan and is consistent with the equality of man. Pope chastises man’s presumption to question the ways of god it is absurd to expect god to alter his laws to favor particular individuals.

Section v 131 48: section v demonstrates that man cannot judge the goodness and righteousness of other men. Though sometimes vice seems to prevail, it is part of god’s order man should be content to be virtuous. External goods, for example, are not the proper rewards for virtue and are often inconsistent with or destructive of virtue. All the riches, honors, nobility, greatness, fame, and superior talents cannot make man happy without likewise having virtue.