"Cliff Notes - Candide" - читать интересную книгу автора (Cliff Notes)

The old woman's remarks serve various purposes. They highlight the worldly-wise, unflappable character of the old woman. They illustrate the universality of evil and emphasize the author's sarcasm. For, even if these events are "common matters," they are not any the less evil. The old woman's commentary brings you down to earth from the dramatic heights of the "young" woman's life.

No major new themes are introduced here; but old themes are expanded upon. For example, a new dimension is added to the theme of evil--its universality. As terrible as events may be, they are not unique. But not being unique makes them all the more terrible. Religious satire is expanded beyond Christianity to include Islam. All across Morocco, people are slaughtering each other by the thousands, but no one forgets to say his prayers to Allah. Both Moroccan pirates and the Christian Knights of Malta treat their captives with equal barbarity. No religion, Voltaire seems to say, can restrain man's wickedness.

The chapter ends with another of Voltaire's "teasers"--the man murmuring in Italian, "What a misfortune to be without testicles!" Although this line draws the reader on to the next chapter, it also serves to emphasize the sexuality that is an important element of the old woman's story. In her youth, her outstanding characteristic was her beauty. As a princess, she was courted and admired for her body. As a prisoner, she was stripped and (like Cunegonde) raped. In the continuation of her story, you will see what happens to her as her beauty fades.

NOTE: Parodies (comic imitation) of literary forms and styles are frequent in Candide. In this chapter, Voltaire appears to be making fun of an ornate Italian literary style. The old woman's description of herself as a princess is a cliche of Renaissance Italian love poetry. The exaggerations and colorful dramatic touches in her narrative also imitate that style.

^^^^^^^^^^CANDIDE: CHAPTER 12

The man who closed Chapter 11 murmuring in Italian about his misfortune was a Neapolitan castrato, or eunuch, a man castrated to preserve a high singing voice. In Morocco on a diplomatic mission, he had formerly been court musician to the old woman's mother, the princess of Palestrina. After offering to help her to Italy, the old woman explains as she continues her story, he treacherously sold her to a local Muslim lord, who made her a member of his harem (women members of the household, including wives, mistresses, sisters, daughters).

A plague epidemic then broke out, killing both the eunuch and the lord, but the young woman survived to be sold from one merchant to another until she ended up in Turkey, in another harem of a local lord, or aga. During a siege by the Russian army, the aga's harem was defended by a group of soldiers who refused to surrender. To feed the starving soldiers, each woman in the harem was forced to sacrifice one buttock. (Here is the answer to the mystery created by the old woman's comment in Chapter 9.)

The fort was taken by the Russians and the women were sold as servants. The young woman finally escaped from Russia and made her way across Europe, working as a servant. No longer young or beautiful, she was often miserable, especially when she thought about her fate in life. Her last position on her journey across Europe was with Don Issachar, as servant to Cunegonde, with whom she now intends to remain.

As her long story ends, the old woman reminds Cunegonde that she is not alone in her fate. The old woman challenges Cunegonde to find one person on the ship who has not had his troubles. If she can find one person who has never thought that he was the most miserable person on earth, the old woman will throw herself overboard.

This second part of the old woman's adventures has been as full of drama and catastrophes as the first, if not more so. She is sold from hand to hand, first as a harem girl and then, after she is mutilated, as a servant. As she is sold off and moved from place to place, she seems to be a plaything of fate. She apparently has no control over her own destiny. Trying to return home from Russia, she never succeeds either in getting back to Italy or in improving her lot.

A counterbalance to the old woman's consistent ill fortune, however, is her equally consistent ability to survive. Everyone except her dies on the shores of Morocco. During the plague, the eunuch, the lord, and most of the harem die, but she survives. Voltaire never comments directly on why she survives, but the conclusion of the chapter may provide a partial answer. Despite everything, the old woman loves life. Perhaps it is this love of life that prevents her from being crushed by its miseries.

But this is really not an answer since other people love life as much and do not survive. The old woman says that nearly everyone she has met feels both the misery of his fate and his attachment to life. Why, then, do some survive and not others? In Candide, do you think Voltaire attempts to answer this question? What would Pangloss say?

Voltaire, in his satirical attacks on optimism, argues that mankind's misery is obviously not for the best. He also rejects the related religious argument that God's will (providence) provides a justification, since both good and bad alike suffer in wars and earthquakes. How else can such negative events be explained? Is man just a victim of random, accidental events? Or are they a result of our own evil nature? Later on, in Chapters 20 and 21, watch for Martin the scholar's pessimistic views on the subject. Or, perhaps, the world is governed by certain principles, but ones that are beyond our ability to understand them, so that what seems like a cruel fate would make sense if only it could be grasped? Whether Voltaire offers, at the end, any explanation for the world's unhappiness or merely dismisses the question as irrelevant, is for you to decide.

NOTE: The old woman's story, to a certain extent, foreshadows Cunegonde's fate. Remember this story when you read the final chapters and compare the old woman's destiny with Cunegonde's.

At the end of the chapter, the old woman issues a challenge to Cunegonde--to see whether she can find anyone who does not pity his lot in life. This refers back to Cunegonde's feeling of misery and self-pity at the end of Chapter 10. Watch for this theme in Chapter 19, where the author uses a similar technique, a challenge to tell the story of one's woes, in a more lighthearted way.

^^^^^^^^^^CANDIDE: CHAPTER 13

The voyage to Buenos Aires continues. As each passenger tells his story, the old woman's viewpoint is confirmed. When they arrive in Buenos Aires, Candide presents himself to the governor, Don Fernando d'Ibaraa y Figueroa y Mascarenes y Lampourdos y Souza. The gentleman takes an immediate fancy to Cunegonde and sends Candide off to drill his troops. The governor proposes to Cunegonde, who goes to the old woman for advice. The old woman suggests that she accept the governor's proposal.

A ship from Portugal arrives in the harbor. The police are searching for the murderer of the Grand Inquisitor. The Franciscan who robbed Cunegonde has set the police on their trail. The old woman urges Cunegonde to stay and Candide to flee as quickly as possible.

The old woman continues to play an important role in this chapter. She guides the actions of both Cunegonde and Candide. Her advice is practical, a level-headed evaluation of the situation. Cunegonde can afford to stay in Buenos Aires because she has the protection of the governor. Candide, on the other hand, can count on the governor for nothing. The young man stands in the way of the governor's desire to marry Cunegonde.

NOTE: Don Fernando d'Ibaraa y Figueroa y Mascarenes y Lampourdos y Souza is a caricature of an arrogant Spanish nobleman. The inflated multiplication of names exaggerates the Spanish custom of using both parents' last names in one's own surname. Voltaire is emphasizing the extreme pride and self-importance of the governor.

In this chapter, the reliability of the old woman's judgment is confirmed. She suspected that the Franciscan had robbed them outside Cadiz, and she was right: There is a degree of cynicism in the old woman's guidance. Her evaluations, although correct, are generally negative, which is why she sees the general misery around her. She coolly counsels Cunegonde to abandon Candide.

Is her advice to Cunegonde purely cynical, though? She does seem to have Cunegonde's best interest at heart. Maybe as a survivor, she sees the best way out of a bad situation. If she were a true cynic, wouldn't she perhaps choose to leave Cunegonde and try her luck elsewhere?

Chapter 13 is another bridge chapter, this time connecting the Old World and the New World. With the arrival of the police from Portugal, Candide sets off for South America on the next phase of his journey.

^^^^^^^^^^CANDIDE: CHAPTER 14

Candide is persuaded by his servant, Cacambo, to leave Cunegonde and head for Paraguay. There, instead of making war on the Jesuits, they will make war for them. When they arrive at the Jesuit encampment, they are seized. The commander consents to meet them when he learns that Candide is a German. The commander turns out to be the young baron of Thunder-ten-tronckh. After embracing him, Candide tells him that his sister, Cunegonde, is alive and in Buenos Aires.