He is a philosopher in this novel. Also, he appeared to be a tutor of Candide. His main philosophy is that “our world is the best of all possible worlds.” This optimistic sentiment is the main target of Voltaire’s satire. During the novel life shows him that his philosophy is not true. Nevertheless, he remains his beliefs, showing people that if you have the aim, concrete purpose, be with it to the end and don’t turn back even after dozens of misfortunes. Just imagine Pangloss is even ravaged by syphilis, is almost hanged, almost dissected, and imprisoned, but it doesn’t matter, he continues to show optimism. Like Candide, these characters aren’t dynamic very much. Pangloss is a little parody on all that overly optimistic Enlightenment philosophers.
Dr. Pangloss in the Essays
Author: Loretta Bowman