Summary
Candide's fortune begins to crumble almost immediately. After losing most of their treasure-laden sheep to accidents and harsh conditions, he and Cacambo reach Surinam with only two animals remaining. There, Candide encounters a mutilated enslaved man who delivers one of literature's most devastating critiques of human cruelty. The man explains how he lost his hand to a sugar mill accident and his leg for attempting to escape, casually noting 'this is the price at which you eat sugar in Europe.' This moment shatters Candide's remaining faith in Pangloss's optimism—he finally sees that some suffering cannot be explained away as part of a greater good. When Candide tries to book passage to reunite with Cunegonde, he learns she's become the governor's mistress, making rescue impossible. He sends Cacambo with diamonds to attempt her rescue while he waits in Surinam. His naivety about money makes him easy prey for a Dutch sea captain who systematically raises his price from 10,000 to 30,000 piastres, then steals Candide's payment and sails away without him. Devastated by this betrayal and the corrupt magistrate who fines him for complaining, Candide decides to find a traveling companion. He holds a contest for 'the most unfortunate man in the province,' ultimately choosing Martin, a poor scholar whose wife robbed him, son beat him, and daughter abandoned him. This chapter marks Candide's transition from naive optimist to someone seeking genuine human connection through shared suffering.
Coming Up in Chapter 20
Candide and his new companion Martin set sail for Europe, but their philosophical discussions about the nature of good and evil will be tested by the dangers that await them on the high seas.
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An excerpt from the original text.(~500 words)
WHAT HAPPENED TO THEM AT SURINAM AND HOW CANDIDE GOT ACQUAINTED WITH MARTIN. Our travellers spent the first day very agreeably. They were delighted with possessing more treasure than all Asia, Europe, and Africa could scrape together. Candide, in his raptures, cut Cunegonde's name on the trees. The second day two of their sheep plunged into a morass, where they and their burdens were lost; two more died of fatigue a few days after; seven or eight perished with hunger in a desert; and others subsequently fell down precipices. At length, after travelling a hundred days, only two sheep remained. Said Candide to Cacambo: "My friend, you see how perishable are the riches of this world; there is nothing solid but virtue, and the happiness of seeing Cunegonde once more." "I grant all you say," said Cacambo, "but we have still two sheep remaining, with more treasure than the King of Spain will ever have; and I see a town which I take to be Surinam, belonging to the Dutch. We are at the end of all our troubles, and at the beginning of happiness." As they drew near the town, they saw a negro stretched upon the ground, with only one moiety of his clothes, that is, of his blue linen drawers; the poor man had lost his left leg and his right hand. "Good God!" said Candide in Dutch, "what art thou doing there, friend, in that shocking condition?" "I am waiting for my master, Mynheer Vanderdendur, the famous merchant," answered the negro. "Was it Mynheer Vanderdendur," said Candide, "that treated thee thus?" "Yes, sir," said the negro, "it is the custom. They give us a pair of linen drawers for our whole garment twice a year. When we work at the sugar-canes, and the mill snatches hold of a finger, they cut off the hand; and when we attempt to run away, they cut off the leg; both cases have happened to me. This is the price at which you eat sugar in Europe. Yet when my mother sold me for ten patagons[20] on the coast of Guinea, she said to me: 'My dear child, bless our fetiches, adore them for ever; they will make thee live happily; thou hast the honour of being the slave of our lords, the whites, which is making the fortune of thy father and mother.' Alas! I know not whether I have made their fortunes; this I know, that they have not made mine. Dogs, monkeys, and parrots are a thousand times less wretched than I. The Dutch fetiches, who have converted me, declare every Sunday that we are all of us children of Adam--blacks as well as whites. I am not a genealogist, but if these preachers tell truth, we are all second cousins. Now, you must agree, that it is impossible to treat one's relations in a more barbarous manner." "Oh, Pangloss!" cried Candide, "thou hadst not guessed at this abomination; it is the end. I must at last...
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Intelligence Amplifier™ Analysis
The Road of Compound Betrayal
Vulnerability attracts predators who share information, creating cascading betrayals that exploit the same weaknesses repeatedly.
Why This Matters
Connect literature to life
This chapter teaches how to recognize when someone is testing your boundaries to see how much they can extract.
Practice This Today
This week, notice when someone starts with a small ask, then immediately follows with a bigger one—that's boundary testing in action.
Now let's explore the literary elements.
Terms to Know
Surinam
A Dutch colony in South America (now Suriname) built on sugar plantations using enslaved labor. In Voltaire's time, it represented European wealth extracted through human suffering.
Modern Usage:
Like how we benefit from cheap goods made in sweatshops - the real cost is hidden from consumers.
Sugar Economy
The 18th-century system where European colonies used enslaved people to grow sugar cane, creating massive profits for merchants while causing immense human suffering. Sugar was as valuable as oil is today.
Modern Usage:
Similar to how our smartphones depend on conflict minerals - luxury built on exploitation we don't see.
Philosophical Optimism
The belief that everything happens for the best in this 'best of all possible worlds.' This chapter shows Candide finally rejecting this naive worldview when faced with undeniable cruelty.
Modern Usage:
Like toxic positivity - insisting everything happens for a reason even when people are genuinely suffering.
Exploitation of Naivety
How the Dutch captain systematically raises prices and then steals from Candide, taking advantage of his inexperience with money and trust in others.
Modern Usage:
Like predatory lending, MLM schemes, or any scam that targets people who don't know better.
Corrupt Magistrate
The local judge who fines Candide for complaining about being robbed, showing how legal systems often protect the wealthy and punish victims.
Modern Usage:
Like when courts side with corporations over individuals, or when reporting workplace harassment gets you fired.
Shared Suffering
Candide's realization that connection comes through acknowledging pain together rather than pretending everything is fine. He chooses Martin as a companion based on mutual hardship.
Modern Usage:
Like support groups or how people bond over difficult experiences rather than fake Instagram perfection.
Characters in This Chapter
Candide
Disillusioned protagonist
Finally abandons his naive optimism when confronted with the mutilated enslaved man. Gets systematically cheated by the ship captain and corrupt officials, learning that good intentions make you a target.
Modern Equivalent:
The small-town person who moves to the city and gets scammed by everyone
The Enslaved Man
Truth-teller
Delivers the chapter's most powerful moment by calmly explaining how he lost his hand and leg, connecting European sugar consumption to human mutilation. His matter-of-fact tone makes the horror even more devastating.
Modern Equivalent:
The factory worker who explains how your cheap clothes are really made
Cacambo
Loyal companion
Remains practical and devoted, agreeing to attempt Cunegonde's rescue with diamonds while Candide waits. Represents genuine friendship amid all the betrayal.
Modern Equivalent:
The ride-or-die friend who'll help you with your messy life without judging
Dutch Sea Captain
Systematic exploiter
Methodically raises his price from 10,000 to 30,000 piastres, then steals Candide's money and sails away. Represents calculated greed disguised as business.
Modern Equivalent:
The contractor who keeps adding fees then disappears with your deposit
Martin
Pessimistic companion
Chosen as Candide's traveling companion after proving he's suffered the most - robbed by his wife, beaten by his son, abandoned by his daughter. Represents wisdom through hardship.
Modern Equivalent:
The coworker who's been through everything and keeps it real about how the world works
Key Quotes & Analysis
"This is the price at which you eat sugar in Europe"
Context: After explaining how he lost his hand in a sugar mill and his leg for trying to escape
This devastating line connects European luxury directly to human mutilation. It's delivered without self-pity, making it even more powerful. This moment finally breaks Candide's optimism completely.
In Today's Words:
Your cheap stuff comes from people getting destroyed - you just don't see it
"My friend, you see how perishable are the riches of this world; there is nothing solid but virtue"
Context: After losing most of their treasure-laden sheep to accidents and disasters
Shows Candide still clinging to philosophical platitudes even as reality crashes down. He's trying to make sense of loss through abstract concepts rather than facing hard truths.
In Today's Words:
Well, at least we learned money isn't everything - we still have our values
"Oh, Pangloss! You never guessed at this abomination; it is the end, I must at last renounce your optimism"
Context: After hearing the enslaved man's story of systematic brutality
The pivotal moment where Candide finally rejects his teacher's philosophy. The word 'abomination' shows he can no longer explain away genuine evil as part of some greater plan.
In Today's Words:
I can't keep pretending everything happens for a reason - some things are just wrong
"I want to take with me a philosopher, a man who has never been happy"
Context: When seeking a traveling companion after being betrayed and robbed
Shows Candide's new understanding that wisdom comes from suffering, not from abstract theories. He's done with optimistic philosophy and wants real experience.
In Today's Words:
I need someone who's actually been through it, not someone who just talks about life
Thematic Threads
Class
In This Chapter
Candide's wealth makes him a target, while his lack of street smarts about money reveals his privileged background
Development
Evolved from earlier displays of naive generosity to active exploitation by those who recognize his inexperience
In Your Life:
When you come into money or move between social classes, people immediately assess whether you're an easy mark
Disillusionment
In This Chapter
The enslaved man's matter-of-fact description of brutality finally breaks Candide's faith in optimistic philosophy
Development
Culmination of mounting evidence that contradicts Pangloss's teachings about the best of all possible worlds
In Your Life:
Sometimes one conversation with someone who's lived through real hardship shatters all your comfortable assumptions
Human Connection
In This Chapter
Candide seeks a travel companion through shared misery rather than shared joy, choosing Martin for his suffering
Development
Shift from seeking rescue through others to seeking understanding through common experience
In Your Life:
The deepest friendships often form not through good times but through surviving similar struggles together
Economic Exploitation
In This Chapter
The Dutch captain systematically increases prices and then steals outright, while the magistrate profits from corruption
Development
First detailed look at how systems of power extract wealth from the vulnerable
In Your Life:
When you're desperate or uninformed, every transaction becomes an opportunity for someone to take advantage
Moral Awakening
In This Chapter
Candide finally sees suffering that cannot be explained away as part of a greater good or divine plan
Development
Transition from blind acceptance of authority to critical thinking about justice and cruelty
In Your Life:
Growing up means recognizing that some pain serves no purpose and some systems are simply wrong
You now have the context. Time to form your own thoughts.
Discussion Questions
- 1
Why does Candide become such an easy target for the Dutch sea captain and other predators in Surinam?
analysis • surface - 2
How does the enslaved man's story about the 'price of sugar' change Candide's worldview, and why is this moment so powerful?
analysis • medium - 3
Where do you see modern versions of people targeting the vulnerable or desperate - in your community, workplace, or online?
application • medium - 4
What specific strategies could Candide have used to protect himself from being repeatedly scammed and betrayed?
application • deep - 5
Why does Candide choose Martin as his traveling companion based on who has suffered most, and what does this reveal about how people connect through hardship?
reflection • deep
Critical Thinking Exercise
Spot the Red Flags
Think about a time when someone took advantage of you financially, professionally, or personally. Write down the warning signs you missed at the time but can see clearly now. Then list three specific questions you could ask or boundaries you could set to protect yourself in similar future situations.
Consider:
- •Predators often create artificial time pressure to prevent you from thinking clearly
- •They may seem overly friendly or offer deals that sound too good to be true
- •Your gut feeling of something being 'off' is usually worth investigating
Journaling Prompt
Write about a situation where you felt vulnerable and how you protected yourself, or describe how you would handle being targeted by someone like the Dutch sea captain today.
Coming Up Next...
Chapter 20: Two Philosophers Debate at Sea
In the next chapter, you'll discover to recognize when someone's worldview comes from their experiences, and learn hope can be both a blessing and a burden. These insights reveal timeless patterns that resonate in our own lives and relationships.