Candide And His Intentions

I believe that if one’s intentions are noble, all can be forgiven…even murder. The question is: Will the person who committed the crime forgive himself? Self-forgiveness is the most important part to overcoming mistakes. It precedes, even, the attempt to make amends. In Candide, Voltaire, describes how his clumsy character’s personality causes him to do terrible things, all with noble intentions. Some of these include: the murder of two priests (one, his brother-in-law to be, and the other a jew) and an inquisition officer. He also kills two Oreillon women's lovers, thinking that they are harming them.

Candide’s intentions are always magnanimous, for a person with such a innocent mentality can’t bear the thought of wittingly causing harm. Although he kills “those two young ladies’ lovers” (69), he only meant to help. Cases where good-willed action have negative effects are common: I have been told countless times the situation where a friend’s friend once defended an unknown woman being stricken by her husband in a public fight. The women of all the stories scolded their saviors, explaining how their being harmed by aggressors is an act of “love”. They continue to reprimand my friend’s friend by telling him that he has no business intervening in something she “obviously deserves”. In such way, many times the right action is not always the correct one. The linked Youtube clip, although slightly radical, describes certain situations where “Good Intentions Go Bad, Or Worse”. Is it better to act based on good intentions or not act at all in the fear of an unintended outcome? I believe that all good intentions should be turned into good-actions, even if the result is undesirable.