THE WILL OF MAN

The Will of Man

The Will of Man

Introduction

The meaning of the Eldorado episode in Candide has been the subject of extensive critical debate. Does it represent the author's ideal, his vision of the perfect society, or does it represent a false paradise, to be rejected by the perspicacious reader as it is by the protagonist? If Eldorado is the perfect society as far as Voltaire is concerned, is it portrayed as one that all or some of humanity can possibly attain or at least approach to some degree, or is it portrayed as an impossible dream, incapable of realization by man, incompatible with his nature?

The literary method employed by Voltaire in portraying Eldorado has also puzzled critics. What is the significance of the manner of description, of the inclusion of certain kinds of details and the total absence of others? Why is the society endowed with a particular atmosphere and set of features? The pursuit of such questions has elicited various justifications of and attacks upon the artistry of the episode.

Thesis Statement

In Eldorado, Poe describes a journey by knight for the fabled city of gold that symbolizes both the selfish strength and unrelenting will of man.

Explanation

Bottiglia, in his analysis of Candide, asserts that Eldorado serves as an ideal, which he defines as a 'standard of perfection supremely desirable but not fully attainable, though more or less approachable'. Its function is to 'serve as a lure so powerful that it seems fully attainable', although by definition it is 'beyond complete realization'. While Bottiglia is correct that Eldorado has features that seem highly desirable, Eldorado is presented as an ideal of a curiously paradoxical kind, whose approachability, not only its attainability, is very much in question. The journey to Eldorado is described in such terms as to emphasize its ...