Voltaire : “Glitter and be Gay”

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U5liuHR6wug#action=share]

This video clip is part of the Musical(or Opera) performed in 2005, Broadway. (Here’s the link of the full uncut version(01:56:22), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DO6I0G6kKz0) In 1918, the conductor and composer ‘Leonard Berstein’ composed an operetta <Candide>, which of course dramatized the original version of Voltaire. This operetta has been performed, even recorded more than 70 anchors, through adding, subtracting and reinterpreting, after its debut. And so, <Candide> became this present Broadway-performed version, 2005. The edited video is the song of ‘Glitter and be Gay; Song of the Jewel’, when Cunegund is presented with the finest jewelries from a wealthy jeweler. The title of the aria is ‘Glitter and be Gay’, however, it is not actually quite much of a laugh when we look at the lyrics closely. There is a sufficient suggestion of emptiness and hollowness inside of the actress who solaces herself with jewelries. Now let us proceed,

Candide :  adj   ingenuous, naïve

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNLm3vo0xHI]

This clip is the Official Video of the artist Grandbrothers by the title “Naïve Rider”. It seems there’s no relation between Candide and this clip; for me, however, this music video has a subtle moment of gainliness with Candide’s adventure (Although... I actually just found this video by chance in searching the image of ‘Naïve’, ^^.). Back to <<Candide(1759)>>, Voltaire even today intrigues our eyes with interest and catharsis. Voltaire criticized Leibniz through the voice of Pangloss who says “Things should be as they are, for everything is for the best.” To Voltaire, the Perfect world is not the possible optimistic world view; it is rather only unrealistic and unenlightened. He was really keen to tell people to DO SOMETHING. That is the reason why he sentenced a cruel destiny to the “ingenuous and naïve” Candide. To answer the violent voice of Leibniz, Voltaire chose not to give him tit for tat, but instead to give one wonderful witty story. A round of applause for Voltaire! He made a splendid achievement of telling the most POLITICAL tale in the field of philosophical work by creating the story as if nothing is being asserted.

"All this was indispensably necessary,"

replied the one-eyed doctor,

"for private misfortunes are public benefits;

so that the more private misfortunes there are,

the greater is the general good."

-

 <Candide, chapter4, p14>

Of course, there is no chance that this world is the best world to Candide who witnessed the war and rape, theft and hanging, wreck and earthquake, cannibalism and slavery, all of which have no reason. With a glance at the adventure of Candide, we can portray Don Quixote. Both speak strongly to us to DO SOMETHING. “We have to CHANGE this REALITY”. For both Candide and Don Quixote, it is unbearable to do nothing, BELIEVING in this perfect world. It is the perfect world for Leibniz who has a rich family and plentiful money; however, for Candide, that world sounds absurd, or even abusive. For fellow sufferers, to accept that perfect world they need one and only thing, BLINDNESS – a trait constructed from the society and which becomes our superego, or perhaps even religion. It is the same for Don Quixote as well. Is he ‘Insane’? The definition of INSANITY always contains the definition of NORMAL. That definition has no choice but to be POLITICAL.

"Do you believe," said Martin,

"that hawks have always beed accustomed

to eat pigeons when they came in their way?"

"Doubtless," said Candide.

"Well then," replied Martin,

"if hawks have always had the same nature,

why should you pretend that mankind change theirs?"

"Oh," said Candide,

"there is a great deal of difference; for free will-"

-

<Candide, chapter 21, p68>

Candide says that the ‘difference’ is accomplished by the ‘free will-’, however, I want to advocate something different: I think the difference lies within the insanity. Using another expression, DIVERSITY. Perhaps only insanity can build some kind of an accomplishment or change. As we all acknowledge, we are all different. We live in a world of pluralism, where a variety of distinct people live in. Some people, like Leibniz, might prefer the world to stay in that way and any change may be unnecessary; others may feel it as uncomfortable or intolerable. Some might see every aspect of the world as a ‘rubbish-lie’, while others might see the world as an ‘optimistic-best’. We cannot say that these different views, like Don Quixote, are wrong. We all see the world as we would like to see it. Any reality is not worse than the other possible reality. The world in which we act with insanity may be, so to speak, “Glitter and be Gay”, while the world of belief is fragile and fading.