"Philosophy consists very largely of one philosopher arguing that all others are jackasses. He usually proves it, and I should add that he also usually proves that he is one himself." US editor H.L. Mencken summed up the majority of Voltaire's Candide in this humorous statement. He stated Voltaire's ideas toward modern philosophy, specifically the Optimism of the philosopher Leibniz. Candide presents the idea that philosophy is useless without application and yet leaves the idea wide open to interpretation. Both sides of the theory are present; the reader must decide which to believe.

On the one hand, the reader is presented with the idea that philosophy is good for philosophy's sake. The character Pangloss is an absolute optimist, constantly saying that "all is well" (2). The optimism of Pangloss carries him through the hardest of circumstances - syphilis (9), a hanging (15), and a botched autopsy...