Tag Archives: Candide

Candide and the Deep State

By Robin Bates | Published: February 6, 2024

Members of the MAGA cult resemble the Baron of Thunder-ten-Tronckh in “Candide.”

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Haitian Earthquake Redux

By Robin Bates | Published: August 18, 2021

No poet can do justice to a disaster such as befell Haiti this past week. Voltaire and Karl Shapiro, however, have works that operate as a response.

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Will Trump Pay? Literature Is Unsure

By Robin Bates | Published: February 21, 2021

Will Trump escape all accountability? Literature weighs in.

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GOP Bailout: Nothing If Not Consistent

By Robin Bates | Published: March 23, 2020

GOP obsession with lining the pockets of the wealthy, now on display in their COVID bailout package, reminds me of the Baron in Voltaire’s “Candide.”

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Jigsaw Order Out of Chaos

By Robin Bates | Published: January 15, 2020

As one who specializes in 18th century British lit, I’m fascinated with how jigsaw puzzles represent order arising from chaos.

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Candide & the GOP’s Tax Obsession

By Robin Bates | Published: June 26, 2017

The GOP’s obsession with tax cuts reminds me of the Baron’s obsession with his lineage in Voltaire’s “Candide.” No matter how much reality changes, he always insists on this one thing.

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Why Christie Aides Targeted Sokolich

By Robin Bates | Published: May 23, 2014

Why did Chris Christie aides target Fort Lee Mayor Mark Sokolich and close down access lanes to the George Washington Bridge? Voltaire has the answer.

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Responding to Unspeakable Horror

By Robin Bates | Published: January 14, 2010

No work of literature can begin to address the trauma that Haitians are currently experiencing in the wake of their devastating earthquake. But then, literature can never do justice to human tragedy. In the face of such inexpressible suffering, the poet gropes around in the dark, occasionally making utterances that some, in their agony, find […]

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