The Candide Continuum
Note from Don: Martha Cantu wrote this as a student in a sophomore level English class at Del Mar College. Her professor gave her an “A” for the paper.
The Candide Continuum
An overzealous Jew and a devout Catholic sharing Lady Cunégonde are both murdered by a politically outcast German named Candide in a fit of passion. Race, Gender, Religion and Politics: Sounds like the lead in story for the Presidential race in 2008; yet these are all the controversial topics Voltaire writes about in his work Candide 250 years ago.
Voltaire highlights the very contentious issue of racial prejudice in his work, which is also a hot topic during the 2008 presidential election. Voltaire writes disparagingly about the Jews. Jews are portrayed as money-mongers. Voltaire illustrates his views, “A Jew was found to whom Candide sold for fifty thousand sequins a diamond worth a hundred thousand, the Jew swearing by Abraham that he could not offer more” (133). The stereotype in these lines is that Jews are accustomed to usury and habitually take advantage of others in money dealings. Racial prejudice in the United States between white Americans and African-Americans is at the forefront of the presidential election. Barack Obama, an African-American candidate, is looking to break the racial barrier that has persisted in
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