Francis Marie Arouet was born on November 21, 1694 in Paris, France. As a child, Arouet grew up in an atmosphere that strictly obeyed the rules of the church. During this time, faith in the church was an obligation for everyone in society and the authority of the church was never questioned, for this would definitely mean instant death. Meanwhile, Arouet enrolled at the Jesuit College of Louis-Le-Grande where he excelled in academics especially his skills in writing. After his schooling, Arouet became noticed by much of the aristocracy for his writing and eventually was imprisoned for supposedly composing two offensive works, the Puerto Regnanto and J’aivu.1 While serving his confinement, he assumed the name de Voltaire. After choosing the new name, Voltaire said, "I was very unlucky under my first name. I want to see if this one will succeed any better."2 Upon his release from the Bastille, Voltaire was exiled to England, a country he grew very fond of. At this time, freedom of speech was continuously exemplified throughout the country of England; Voltaire found this toleration very advantageous to the beginnings of his opinion. While in England, Voltaire decided to redirect his purpose of writing; he now decided to fight for the right of human liberty. From the time Voltaire moved to England through the remainder of his life, he marked the beginning of a new period, the Englightment, a time where he would continuously mock the idea of religion and reinforce the idea of human liberty and opinion fearlessly through his many plays, literature, and essays.
Furthermore, Voltaire remained in England for three years while publishing an English version of the La Henriade, an essay concerning the defense of religious toleration.3 Aft...
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...zes Voltaire the best when he comments, "Probably no man ever lived who assailed the Church and the State with the same wit and keenness that always at Voltaire’s command; and yet in spite of this he managed to live comfortably, accumulate rich and die in peace."13
Notes
1. "Francis Marie Arouet de Voltaire." http://www.ericjonas.com/
/features/candied/Voltaire/default.asp (20 Feb. 2000).
2. Darrow, Charles. "Voltaire." http://www.aracnet.com/~atheism/hist/
darrow5.htm (20 Feb. 2000).
3. "Francis Marie Arouet de Voltaire," 1.
4. Darrow, 6.
5. Darrow, 9.
6. Darrow, 9.
7. Darrow, 13.
8. Darrow, 17.
9. Darrow, 11.
10. Wendy McElroy, "Voltaire vs. Intolerance," Free Inquiry, Winter 1999, 61.
11. Darrow, 15.
12. Darrow, 16.
13. Darrow, 4.
Throughout Voltaire’s Candide, the implications of religious symbols and figures are used to satirize the philosophy of paternal optimism by highlighting hypocrisy in the Church. The role of the Church in historical context offers significant insight into the analysis of the text. Candide was written in 1759, a period where people started questioning the authority of the Church to explore reason as a means for acquiring knowledge. With this in mind, Candide’s religious implications are relevant with consideration to the time period. By stressing the theme of institutional hypocrisy and separation between the Church and religious values, Voltaire invalidates the Church’s role as a supreme authority and thus addresses man’s need for an altered
Voltaire. Candide. New York: Boni and Liveright, 1918. Project Gutenberg. Web. 11 January 2014. http://www.gutenberg.org/files/19942/19942-h/19942-h.htm
...ugh powerful, intelligent use of satire, Voltaire makes his personal views clear and encourages the reader to challenge the way in which religion and the State operate.
Voltaire went to prison twice and spent multiple years in exile. The experiences he went through in his lifetime helped him develop his views on religion. He believed that everyone had the right to choose their religion and be free to practice that religion where they want. There would be conflicts between religious citizens and the government if there wasn’t freedom of religion. This choice should be available in England, according to Voltaire, to prevent problems from arising. “If one religion only were allowed in England, the government would very possibly become arbitrary; if there were two, the people would cut one another's throats; but as there are such multitude, they all live happy and in peace.” The choice of religion belongs solely to the individual and shouldn’t be able to be taken away from a
Each chapter of Candide is a part of the story which Voltaire carefully expresses his concerns and criticism of 18th century society. Chapter 11 “The History of the old women” in particular criticises the pre-modern era in regards to religion. The enlightenment period called for freedom of religion from many philosophers ...
Voltaire, Francois-Marie Arouet de. “Candide.” The Norton Anthology of World Literature. Gen. ed. Martin Puchner. Shoter 3rd ed. Vol. 2. New York: Norton, 2013. 100-59. Print.
Voltaire, Francois-Marie Arouet de. “Candide.” The Norton Anthology of World Literature. Gen. ed. Martin Puchner. Shoter 3rd ed. Vol. 2. New York: Norton, 2013. 100-59. Print.
Francois-marie Arouet, known as Voltaire lived in an age of turmoil. Born in a middle-class family in Paris, Arouet witnessed general public in state of crushing poverty while French aristocracy governs with strict law relentless hierarchy. Meanwhile, the Enlightenment movement spread across Europe and spurred challenges of intellectual ideas, human equality, basic rights, etc. The movement emphasized importance of objectivity and scientific reasoning. Such a mixed environment lent Voltaire multifaceted knowledge of the society.
... Although he advocated religious tolerance, he believed that any one church should not have absolute power. By the time he was executed, he had already brought about the end of the power and right of the church to torture France. People in France still are not as faithful to the Catholic Church as they had been before Voltaire had introduced them to the idea of “reasoning”. The Enlightenment is held to be the source of many modern ideas, such as the primary values of freedom and reason.
Voltaire was never able to connect with the masses, and that is the main catalyst for the fact that he was jailed and ignored. Mandela reflects on the accomplishments made in four centuries. While man still does not have absolute free speech, he is not so suppressed that he must hide his feelings by literary means.
“Ecrasons l’infame,” which is interpreted, “We must crush the vile thing.” This is the expression Voltaire used to articulate his feelings for organized religion. With many natural theists soon to follow his path, Voltaire expressed his hatred for cultural religions, opting for a universal God of nature. Given a few more centuries, Darwin would have given Voltaire the scientific theory to support his desire for atheism. But alas, with no other theory in place, intelligent individuals of 18th century France were forced to use creationism to explain the world in its beauty and organization. This, as previously stated, was not a problem for Voltaire. His issue was the moral implications that separated religious groups, often to the point of war with one another. Religious intolerance was a subject he dealt with in many of his works, especially Candide. The religious characters in this work were mostly negative with the exception of Brethren predecessor, the Anabaptist, and the old woman. His opinion of various religions was also established in Candide, although it was simply a vague one, clumping all organized religions into an “evil superstitions” category. The conclusion of this work also gave us insight on Voltaire’s view of religion as either positive or detrimental to society and the individual.
Voltaire had written his English Letters while in England. He knew it was too dangerous to publish in Paris, for these letters contained studies of the great English philosophers and comments on life, which were modern then and modern now. "The truth is always modern and there never comes a time when it is safe to give it a voice.
Riley, Patrick. “The Tolerant Skepticism of Voltaire and Diderot: Against Leibnizian Optimism and Wise Charity.” Early Modern Skepticism and the Origins of Toleration. Ed. Alan Levine. Lanham: Lexington Books, 1999. 249-270. Print.
The Scientific revolution in the 16th and 17th centuries changed the way that people views the world. Scientific philosophers such as Galileo and Descartes threw out the old teachings of the church and challenged them with new ways of thinking. These men sought to prove that rational thought could prove the existence of God. They also challenged that it was an understanding of a series of rational thoughts, not faith, would bring understanding of how the world worked. Traditional ways of thinking were ultimately challenged by logical and sensible rationale.
François-Marie Arouet, better known as Voltaire, was born on the 21st of November in the year 1694 in Paris, France. He was the son of François Arouet and Marie Marguerite Daumand and the youngest out of five children. At the age of seven his mother Marie Marguerite Daumand died and left him to grow close to his godfather, a freethinker, who was a part of the upper-middle-class. Due to his godfather being able to support him economically, Voltaire was able to receive a good education. In 1704, he was sent to the College Louis-le-Grand and studied there for seven total years.