Just some dev reading a book: Candide by Voltaire

“Candide” by Voltaire is essentially an 18th-century literary rollercoaster of misadventures, dripping with sarcasm, irony, and philosophical ponderings about the nature of happiness and the often-quoted notion that “we live in the best of all possible worlds.” Imagine the most optimistic guy you know, Candide, who, under the tutelage of Professor Pangloss, believes that everything happens for the best. Now, throw him into a world that seems to enjoy proving him wrong at every turn.

Candide’s journey starts in a beautiful castle in Westphalia, but he’s quickly kicked out for loving the baron’s daughter, Cunégonde, a bit too ardently. From there, Candide embarks on a global trek that introduces him to a bizarre cast of characters, including but not limited to: a syphilis-ridden Pangloss, a repeatedly deceased baron (who, despite being killed multiple times, inconveniently refuses to stay dead), a sheep laden with jewels, and an old woman with one buttock.

As Candide travels from one disaster to the next — surviving wars, earthquakes, and the Spanish Inquisition — he slowly begins to question his unwavering optimism. The group encounters every possible misfortune: slavery, shipwrecks, and even an encounter with the mythical city of El Dorado, which, in true Candide luck, they decide to leave because, obviously, what could possibly be better than wandering a world filled with misery?

In the end, after reuniting with Cunégonde, who is now far from the beauty he remembered…