Candide's Constant Search for Satisfaction Voltaire's Candide is a story about the life of a man who travels with only one goal in mind; the pursuit of happiness. Although many circumstances and difficult situations seem to stand in his way, Candide never loses sight of his objective. Voltaire's character travels to many different cultures, in an attempt to figure out the many differences between civilized life. The purpose of Voltaire's work, therefore, was to express to his audience the nature of the common folk, and proclaim how he thinks culture should be defined. Candide's life was basically normal, until th