Friday, November 30, 2012
Clergy and Sex
I find it extremely ironic that in Voltaire's Candide so many of the clergy and church figures are engaged in sexual actions, aka. "experimental physics". For example, the monk that Paquette is seducing is not supposed to be having sex, but he is and is engaged in acts such as that with his brothers back at the monastery. Also, the church figures seem to be corrupted in other ways than sex such as stealing and hoarding money. For example, the Franciscan friar that stole the jewels from Candide and Cunegonde was completely in the wrong to do such a thing. I could have understood almost anyone else but a church member stealing jewels and having sex when they are strictly prohibited.
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2 comments:
I think it's just a comment on how corrupt the clergy is. Very few people trust the Catholic Church during the Enlightenment and Voltaire is completely against the organized religion. The clergy not obeying the vows of their station was a common thing. Also, I think Brother Giroflee (I hope I spelled that right) was an example of why the clergy acted that way. He told the story of how he was sent to the clergy by his family and not of his own free will. Someone who was forced to take the vows would not feel any obligation to keep them. That situation probably happened with a lot of the clergy.
Yeah i agree with Lindsay. I think it is just an attack on the church and on organized religion in general. He also ridicules Jews and Muslims, so it obviously isn't an uncommon theme in his literature. He is expressing his feelings on how the church uses people and how they are greedy and lustful despite their holy appearance.
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