Does Candide's Punishment Fit the Crime?

To see if Candide’s punishment fits his crime, we must first define the two. What is his crime? The crime of ignorance. He believed in Pangloss’s words to be the only truth. He believed that the world, in which he was living in, was truly the best of all worlds. Kissing Cunegonde was not the crime, but simply a catalyst for the punishment. What is the punishment? The punishment is nothing more than a cruel, ironic journey through life, filled with chaos, misery, and despair. This is a trial for Candide, testing his philosophy, learned from Pangloss.

The punishment is fitting, because it was necessary. For Candide to gain knowledge for himself, instead of taking one’s words, he needed to experience. Instead of living in the cave that was the castle of Baron Thunder-ten Tronckh and listening to what Pangloss told him about the world, his punishment forces him to delve into the world for himself, making mistakes, and learning on his own. Of course, he has a very tough time adjusting, changing his views. He still believed that the world was the best of all worlds, after all the ordeals in Europe. The only difference was that he thought it would be in the New World. Therefore, more tragedy and antics must follow, until he sees his flawed ways.

Candide’s crime of ignorance can only be fixed by experience. His punishment is simply that. It is for Candide to experience life in the world on his own, and for him to develop his own thoughts and philosophy. For that reason, this punishment is fitting.

The Modern Socrates

Socrates. One of the earliest philosophers who have shaped the way humankind thinks for millennia. His methods were undoubtedly unique. He would question, question and question, but he would not seek for answers for himself, but for the other to find the answer in themselves. But he would also teach others. Not about what Socrates was questioning, but the method. He would inspire his followers and the audience to do the same with their lives and search if they are living by truth.

Now the question is if there is any modern day Socrates. Sure there are people that use his method of questioning others to bring about knowledge in the others. Some say Michael Moore can be thought as one. He asks questions to uncover what he wants to find in his movies. But in the end, isn’t what he is trying to do simply to sell his movies? He has an audience and a political perspective to match the audience. While he may ask questions, the audience has to ask if his movies and shots are showing the entirety or just focusing on what he wants to show us. Instead, the audience is usually those that agree with him. He may show something in a different light, but in the end, it’s his political perspective. Who knows what the truth is?

Now the problem becomes, is there any modern day Socrates? Is there anyone who asks questions to bring about knowledge in those who think they know the answers? I think that there is not a single person right now who can truly be labeled as a Socrates. No one seeks the truth without bias as he had done millennia ago.

Is an unexamined life worth living?

A life not worth living? Blasphemy. That is the greatest insult to someone. You are telling them that they are, in fact, causing a detriment to the rest of the world. You are telling them that they are a waste of space, air, and time. A life not worth living, is simply telling someone to go kill themselves. There is no life not worth living. Sure there may be terrible things done by or done against a person. But they need to find change then. But simply saying one’s life is not worth living because of lack of self-examination is taking it too far.

Ignorance is bliss in a sense. If one does not know about insight and looking into their lives, they can be perfectly happy. But as soon as knowledge and this idea of examining one’s life to find a deeper meaning come into play, they stay. The idea becomes a seed that grows and wraps around the brain. A life filled with insight and self-examination can lead to much more. I suppose then it becomes our job to show this to others to further their lives. As Socrates has said, through insight, we become more knowledgeable. So isn’t it our duty to pass this on?

Simply saying someone’s life is not worth living is not the right thing to do. What has it done? It accomplishes nothing. While an examined life will lead to more, we cannot just say it and leave it at that. We must do something about it. Because is a life without action really worth living?

Eulogy

It’s hard losing a loved one, a friend, or anyone you cared about. The emotional pain and the fact that your life is completely different without them are sometimes too much to bear. Most often, no words can neither express how much we miss them nor how we cherish the time we had with them on this earth. We struggle to get past this obstacle, but instead of grief, we look at all the things the loved one has done for us.

Thankfully, I really don’t know much about this guy and was hired to just give this eulogy at the last minute. Turns out the guy who was supposed to do it didn’t show up. I’m sure this kid, D- d- doyen-or whatever, was a good kid. They usually are. He probably did his work most of the time. He probably was the kind of kid who didn’t do drugs, stayed in school, and, you know, was just a good kid. Good kid… yeah. Oh, right. I have this paper with all the things he’s done. Uh, let’s see. He was a good student… was in a couple clubs… was pretty easy-going. Looks like he liked to make his friends smile and laugh. I bet a couple of you here know what I’m talking about. I certainly don’t. Hey, you know what? I bet he was telling a joke to the friend driving as the car crashed. I bet— I bet that they were smiling as they were hit dead on by the 18-wheeler. At least they went out smiling, right?

This D- d-duyoon guy probably had dreams of his own like many of us do. He might have had great aspirations of being a somebody in this world, doing something meaningful, something people would remember. Too bad he didn’t have the time to accomplish those dreams. If he did, I’d actually have something to say.

I’m sure you guys here all miss him since you’re at his funeral and everything. If I had the chance to meet him, well, before he was cold as a brick and inside a coffin, I would most likely be with you guys. You know, crying over there and dressed in black. He might have been a pretty okay guy, from the looks of it. Anyway, I hope he lives in your hearts, dreams and memories and all that. He was a joy to this world and the people he met, and I’m sure he’ll be the same in the afterlife. Now where’s the fifty bucks I was promised?