Candide

服尔德 / Fu LeiApr 2022

4.4

Word count: 53K words
Chapters: 31

Summary

This book is one of three classic novels by the great eighteenth-century French writer Voltaire (Fu Lei's rendering of his name), telling the love story of a naive and simple-hearted young man.

Editor's review

Fu Lei's translation restores the edge of Voltaire's satire in concise, expressive Chinese, so that this eighteenth-century philosophical novel retains both its intellectual bite and its lightness of reading in the Chinese context. Through the misfortunes of the naive young Candide, the novel repeatedly tests optimistic philosophy against real disasters and human weakness; the plot moves briskly, the satire escalates layer by layer, and it offers both the pleasure of absurd comedy and a cool inquiry into fate, suffering, and moral choice. For general readers, it is a short, powerful passage into French Enlightenment literature; for literary enthusiasts, it shows how a philosophical novel can carry ideas through story without lapsing into preaching. It is best read in one relatively uninterrupted stretch, then revisited to trace the relationship between the characters' fortunes and the author's stance.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers who want a short introduction to French Enlightenment literature and Voltaire's style
Literature enthusiasts interested in satire and philosophical fiction
Readers who wish to think about optimism and suffering through literature
Readers who want a sample of Fu Lei's translation to appreciate his style

Not a good fit for

Readers expecting a full-length plot with complex character development
Readers completely unfamiliar with eighteenth-century Europe who are unwilling to fill in the context

Reading tips

Read through the whole text first without pausing to research satirical passages, preserving the pace and sense of the absurd.
After finishing, revisit the key turning points and mark the passages where the author repeatedly tests optimism.
If the background feels remote, read a brief introduction to Voltaire and the Enlightenment before entering the text.
Read alongside the author's other philosophical novels to observe the repetition and variation in his satirical technique.

版权信息
第一章老实人在一座美丽的宫堡中怎样受教育，怎样被驱逐
第二章老实人在保加利亚人中的遭遇
第三章老实人怎样逃出保加利亚人的掌握，以后又是怎样的遭遇
第四章老实人怎样遇到从前的哲学老师邦葛罗斯博士，和以后的遭遇
第五章飓风，覆舟，地震；邦葛罗斯博士，老实人和雅各的遭遇
第六章怎样的举办功德大会禳解地震，老实人怎样的被打板子
第七章一个老婆子怎样的照顾老实人，老实人怎样的重遇爱人
第八章居内贡的经历
第九章居内贡，老实人，大法官和犹太人的遭遇
第十章老实人，居内贡和老婆子怎样一贫如洗的到加第士，怎样的上船
第十一章老婆子的身世
第十二章老婆子遭难的下文
第十三章老实人怎样的不得不和居内贡与老婆子分离
第十四章老实人与加刚菩，在巴拉圭的耶稣会士中受到怎样的招待
第十五章老实人怎样杀死他亲爱的居内贡的哥哥
第十六章两个旅客遇到两个姑娘，两只猴子，和叫做大耳朵的野蛮人
第十七章老实人和他的随从怎样到了黄金国，见到些什么
第十八章他们在黄金国内的见闻
第十九章他们在苏利南的遭遇，老实人与玛丁的相识
第二十章老实人与玛丁在海上的遭遇
第二十一章老实人与玛丁驶近法国海岸，他们的议论
第二十二章老实人与玛丁在法国的遭遇
第二十三章老实人与玛丁在英国海岸上见到的事
第二十四章巴该德与奚罗弗莱的故事
第二十五章佛尼市贵族波谷居朗泰访问记
第二十六章老实人与玛丁和六个外国人同席，外国人的身份
第二十七章老实人往君士坦丁堡
第二十八章老实人，居内贡，邦葛罗斯和玛丁等等的遭遇
第二十九章老实人怎样和居内贡与老婆于相会
第三十章结局

FAQ

Can I understand this novel without a background in French literature?

Yes. The storyline is relatively clear and driven mainly by the characters' fortunes, not reliant on a mass of allusions. If you are unfamiliar with eighteenth-century European intellectual debates, you may not be fully sensitive to the targets of the satire on a first reading, but read through the plot first and then revisit key passages, and your understanding will deepen noticeably.

Is this book better read in one sitting or in stages?

It is short and moves quickly; reading it in one relatively uninterrupted stretch is recommended to maintain the continuity of the satire and the sense of the absurd. If you read in stages, briefly note how the characters' fortunes change each time you stop, so you don't lose the thread when you return.

Is there anything to keep in mind when reading Fu Lei's translation?

Fu Lei's diction is concise and his sentences are rather tight; you may need to slow down at first. With long sentences, grasp the main clause first rather than parsing word by word. His translation is itself part of the reading value; after finishing, reread a few passages to appreciate the tone and the measure of the satire.

What can I read after finishing this book?

You can continue with Voltaire's other philosophical novels, or read selected works by Enlightenment writers such as Montesquieu and Diderot to compare different approaches to philosophical fiction. If Fu Lei's translation interests you, you might turn to his translations of other French literature and observe how he handles different genres.

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About the author

服尔德 Author

Voltaire (Fuzi'erde) is a foreign literary author known for his philosophical fiction; public information about him is limited, and his nationality and dates of birth and death are not clearly recorded. Eleven of his works are held in the collection, including Candide, The Ingenuous One, Zadig, Micromégas, and Selected Short Stories of Voltaire, indicating that his writing consists mainly of short and medium-length narratives. These works are often classified as foreign literature, classic works, and world classics. They typically use fictional characters and journeys to distant lands as narrative threads, employing exaggeration, satire, and absurd plots to discuss fate, reason, optimism, and human nature in a witty and understated style. Candide, his best-known work, is an important entry point for understanding his style. Overall, Voltaire's works combine narrative appeal with intellectual sharpness; they continue to be translated and read in Chinese-speaking contexts and have had a considerable influence on later philosophical and satirical fiction.

Fu Lei Author · China · 1908–1966

Fu Lei (1908–1966), styled Nu'an and known by the sobriquet Nu'an, was a native of Nanhui, Shanghai, and a renowned Chinese translator, writer and literary critic. He studied at the University of Paris in his early years and devoted his life to translating more than thirty works by French masters such as Balzac, Romain Rolland and Voltaire. Adhering to the principle of valuing spiritual resemblance over formal likeness, his translations are celebrated for their vividness and concision and are still widely read today. His renditions of Jean-Christophe, Le Père Goriot and Eugénie Grandet have long served as key pathways for Chinese readers into French literature. Beyond translation, he wrote Letters from Fu Lei and Twenty Lectures on World Masterpieces of Art, works marked by sincerity and learning. The library holds 295 of his works, spanning essays, foreign literature and classic translations, testifying to the enduring influence of his writing and translation in the Chinese-speaking world.