Two Different Ways Of Telling A Story.

Two stories. Two different people: Lady Cunegonde and the old woman. One purpose: to criticize. From the beginning of the story we are introduced to Lady Cunegonde. There was love present between her and Candide from the beginning of the story. The old lady appears afterward helping Candide in his time of need when Pangloss dies.

This two characters are complete opposites. Lady Cunegonde is the daughter of the baron and a beautiful woman. The old lady is the daughter of the pope and ha had a hard life. In chapters eight through eleven this two woman narrates their different stories. All throughout hers Lady Cunegonde is complaining on how terrible her life has been. “but I have been so terribly unfortunate in my affairs, that I have lost almost all hope.”(page 48) knowing her life has been much worse the Old Lady states how unbelievable it is the way she complains. “You haven’t had misfortunes like mine to bear. I assure you.”(page 48)

Voltaire uses the Old Lady story to criticize the high class people and to show how they are always complaining about insignificant details when really there are other people that’s suffer much more. Sure want Lady Cunegonde went through was hard but compared to the Old Lady story it was nothing. Many times we don’t realize this because the only bad things that happen to us and to the people around us are these insignificant details, so we make a big deal about. When really people that aren’t in our society suffer much more complicated things. Voltaire could have tried to teach us lesson by this or at least make us come to reason and realize that we should not complain about what happens to us but instead be grateful.