A Freudian Analysis of Voltaire's CandideIn Civilization and Its Troubles, Sigmund Freud refers to the important role that love plays in the world of man. Love certainly plays an important role in Voltaire's Candide; throughout Candide's travels, one constant is his love for Lady Cunegonde and his desire to be with her. Freud writes "the way of life that makes love the center of everything [...] comes naturally to all of us" (Freud, page 29). Candide's love for Cunegonde is the driving force of his life from the moment they separate at the beginning of the novel until they join in marriage at the end. During his experiences, Candide continues to think of Cunegonde. Even after narrowly surviving the Bulgarian-Abar war, Candide's thoughts still turn to Cunegonde (Voltaire, p. 26). “We are never so desperately unhappy as when we have lost our love object” (Freud, p. 29). Man is never more vulnerable than when the person he has chosen as the object of his love is taken away from him. When Candide is in Eldorado, where no one suffers from hunger or has unsatisfied needs, he says to his companion Cacambo: "I will never be happy without Madame Cunegonde" (Voltaire, p. 82). Candide has apparently found the only place on Earth where there is no poverty, war or injustice. He and Cacambo could have lived a long and fulfilling life in Eldorado, but Candide insists on returning to his beloved Cunegonde. When Candide and Cunegonde finally reunite, Cunegonde asks Candide "[what] happened to you after that innocent kiss you gave me." ?" (Voltaire, p. 40). The kiss, which Cunegonde defines as innocent, cost Candide dearly; his brother the baron "kicked Candide out of the house with... means of paper... is largely responsible for our misery and we would be much happier if we gave up and returned to primitive conditions," (Freud, p. 33). Candide realizes at the end of the novel that the formula for being satisfied is simple: "We must go and work in the garden" (Voltaire, p. 144).When man does not have to fight the rules of civilization, his life becomes much simpler. Many of the points made by Sigmund Freud in Civilization and Its Discontents can be paralleled with Candide's experiences in Candide. by Voltaire.These points can also be linked to the society in which man lives today.Candide is clearly a member of the society of men and is subject to all the needs and desires described by Freud.Civilization_and_its_discontents York: W. W. Norton and Company; 1961.Voltaire. White. London: Penguin Books; 1947.