Candide

A short satirical novella by Voltaire that follows the naive protagonist Candide as he travels the world and encounters war, natural disasters, hypocrisy, and human cruelty. The book skewers Leibnizian optimism, organized religion, and social injustice, becoming one of the most famous works of the Enlightenment. Its brisk, ironic style and moral questioning have made it a lasting critique of philosophical optimism and a staple of Western literature.

123 pages 2h 23m reading time