Humans from the beginning of time have always needed a sense of immediate gratification. If one is earning $20, 000 a year they want to make $35, 000 a year; if one is making $600, 000 a year then they want to make $800,000 a year. Where has human happiness gone, or where does it come from? This notion of being happy is seen in .
The Hustler and Candide through Eddie Felson and Martin. .
Eddie Felson was never satisfied with what he had. He was addicted to gambling and always yearned for more. He lived a corrupt life in "darkness" in which his plate of life was never full. Since his plate of life was lacking happiness he looked toward gambling to try and fill his emptiness. Eddie would never settle for anything less than the best. At one point in the movie he was up $18, 000 in a pool game against Minnesota Fats, the best pool player around. This however was not good enough for Eddie so instead of quitting while he was ahead, he kept playing for twenty-five straight hours until he had lost all of his money. This greed for more led to his demise. This great loss was the beginning of his evolution into a new man. After seeing the "light" with Sarah during the picnic, he no longer desired more, but rather was content with what he had. He realized that life itself was enough to fill his empty "plate of life." .
In Candide one sees that some people are not happy with themselves. Martin, Candide's friend and loyal servant had a completely different mindset than Candide in which "everything is for the best." At one point in the novel after they had traveled much of the world and been to Eldorado, a utopian city, they came across a healthy, fat monk and a young lady. Ignorantly, Candide insisted that they were truly happy people while Martin said they were far from happiness. Thus they made a bet and invited them for dinner to hear their stories and discover the true answer. After talking with them for a while Martin's guess was right.
