Dr. Paul LeClerc

After reading through chapters 15 and 16 of Candide, I decided to find reference on other material. By that time I had clearly painted a picture of the message in my mind and owned my own interpretation of it, but I was curious to compare it to a different reader’s understanding. I found a short feedback on the book from a source previously unknown to me: Dr. Paul LeClerc.

As he narrated his experience and opinion on the novel I realized that he had a very similar interpretation as mine, but I also found that the context in which he read it had some close connections to my current situation as a reader. Dr. LeClerc said that he was first introduced to the novel when he was eighteen, which is barely 2 years ahead of my age when introduced to the text. Age is a great factor when considering why and how the individual comes to such interpretation, and it is said that the first impression is never forgotten. We had similar interpretations of the text to a point, but he highlights themes which although I identify in the novel, don’t really regard as crucial individually. He mentions the following themes dealt with: “war, rape, mayhem, theft, sexual trafficking, anti-Semitism is there although Voltaire is not conscious of seeing that as an evil (Dr. LeClerc).” He previously told us that he was required to ask the bishop for permission in order to read those books, which made the act of reading them almost a privilege and demonstrated the conservatism of the context. In such a conservative environment, the themes he previously mentioned are not encountered as often, and therefore produce a more profound effect when found, which reflects the fact that he highlights them in his interpretation on the book. When concluding his apparition, Dr. Paul LeClerc mentions the following: “I think that what he though and does indeed provide through this story, in the way it evolves and especially in the ending of the story, is that we can and should deliberately structure our lives in a way that is on the one hand enlightened, but more importantly, becomes a bulwark, a defense against evil that one person perpetrates against another (Dr. Paul LeClerc).” I agree with the point he makes about structuring our lives as to become more resistant individuals against evil that happens by developing an impenetrable barrier of emotion as the point the book tries to make, even though I disagree with the meaning of the book itself in that sense.

It is always great to find in others the opportunity to revaluate our own interpretations as to fix or complement our understanding. The opportunity Dr. Paul LeClerc gave me to identify my interpretation with his has given me a greater sense of Voltaire’s intentions. Go ahead and give him a chance dear reader, for he might suggest interesting ideas to you to, and if it happens that my supposition is erroneous, I assure you that if not in him in someone you will always find compliment to your thinking.

I strongly recommend that you watch the video by selecting the following link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zwMlWyqi0ms