History homework help

History homework help. History 102: Optional Special Assignment on Voltaire’s Candide
Spring 2020
Dr. Rzadkiewicz and Ms. Shuherk
Note for future use: Voltaire’s Candide can be considered a primary source for studying about
the Enlightenment—for example, its fictional literature—as well as Voltaire’s biography.
It could also be used as a secondary source, if, for example again, your focus is, say, 19th
-century
European literature, and you cite Candide to contrast Romantic with Enlightenment fiction or
thought.
The following assignment is optional, meaning that you don’t have to do it. But some of you
may want to do it for extra points toward your final grade in the course.
Description of the Assignment, which is worth thirty points (3 points for each concept and 3
points for the bonus):
The following is a list of the major general ideas, ideals, and values of the Enlightenment
found in Voltaire’s Candide, published in 1759. They are concepts as the Enlightenment
philosophes understood them.
1. Freedom: especially freedom of thought, necessary for autonomy (“freedom from external
control or influence; independence”), as Kant indicated in his definition of Enlightenment;
2. Humanism: a concern for humanity, what is uniquely human, and for solving human
problems;
3. Cosmopolitanism: familiarity with different cultures obtained through travel;
4. Toleration; the practice of tolerating people who differ from you in their opinions, practices,
religions, etc.
5. Secularism: worldliness; removing religion from explanations about how the world or aspects
of it work;
6. Pagan self-reliance: relying on yourself to solve problems, instead of praying to your god or
the gods to help you;
7. Empiricism: strictly speaking, “the theory that all knowledge is derived from senseexperience”; but it can also mean, as Voltaire used it, learning from experience;
8. For cultural relativism: ‘the idea that a person’s beliefs, values, and practices should be
understood based on that person’s own culture, rather than be judged against the criteria of
another”; in other words, it means being non-judgmental when one encounters people who
display different practices or beliefs than those accepted as the norm in your culture; that is, you
try to understand people who are different in terms of their culture, not yours. As such, it is the
opposite of ethnocentrism, which constitutes being judgmental, as one evaluates “other cultures
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according to preconceptions originating in the standards and customs of one’s own culture,” This
can be a toughie, so here’s a clue from Candide: monkeys, and the difference between how
Candide and Cacambo react when they see them.
9. Realism: “the attitude or practice of accepting a situation as it is and being prepared to deal
with it accordingly.” Let’s see. Candide is subtitled Optimism, a stance that is represented by
Pangloss; Martin, another character, is a pessimist in his outlook, the complete opposite of
Pangloss. Which three characters represent realism?
Bonus: What is the meaning of the famous last line of Candide? “’All that is very well,’
answered Candide, ‘but let us cultivate our garden.’” What does Voltaire mean? Provide a brief
explanation.
Your assignment is to find a scene or a theme in Candide that illustrates concepts one through
nine and explain briefly how it does. Once again, three points will be given for each correct
answer and explanation. The bonus is also worth three points.
I am opening a forum so that you may discuss the particulars of the assignment with each other
before writing out your answers. But if you have read Candide, completing this assignment
should be a breeze.

History homework help