Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
Voltaire influence on society
Esaay on voltaire
Influence of Voltaire on the French revolution
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Recommended: Voltaire influence on society
Biography Profile
Voltaire
Voltaire's accomplishments were writing many masterpieces and speaking his mind on what he thought was right.
Voltaire's real name was Francois Aurette. His father was a notary, which provided him with a life of upper class and comfort. Sadly his mother died when he was 7, and that horrible cause made him rebel. He went to his godfather who was a freethinker. He was a very smart man and got an education of an upperclassman. He attended the “Louis-Le-Grand” in Paris. While in Paris he found a passion for literature. When Voltaire was young and attended “Louis-Le-Grand” in Paris, he wanted to become a writer. His father made him work as a legal assistant, but he didn't do much of a good job at that. Instead he
…show more content…
He got kicked out of Paris France so many times, many that lead him to speak (or write) his mind. He was very brave to write and get kicked out. It didn't really phase him when he did because then he could write something new in a peaceful way. In this person's adult life, once again nobody really helped him. His guidance was his own and he made many accomplishments because of it. Challenges that Voltaire faced was getting kicked out of Paris France, going to prison, (although he was very successful in writing during that time) being an enemy of many. Getting kicked out of France helped him write many things that lead him towards more success. Going to prison made him write “Oedipe” which gave him his name Voltaire. Having enemies made him get ahead of his rivals and ahead of his time. He wrote 2,000 books made with 21,000 different letters. Voltaire's accomplishments were achieved in 1717, when he made the play “Oedipe”. Then in 1746 his publications lead him to be voted for “Academie Francaise” when taking religion more seriously. Yes, i think Voltaire is an important historical figure because he helped france become a better city in many ways and he was an excellent writer. He is one of the greatest writers and philosophers today. He thought
Voltaire, more formally known as Francois-Marie Arouet, was a writer, philosopher and historian in the Age of Enlightenment. The Age of Enlightenment was the period of time from the late seventeenth century through early nineteenth century in which European thinkers and philosophers began to question and contradict typical styles of thinking. The belief behind this new Enlightenment thinking was that the human race could better themselves through simply creating reasonable change.
Autobiographer, essayist, playwright, poet, satirist, Enlightenment writer and philosopher – these are just a few of the hats worn by French born François-Marie Arouet, more famously known by the adopted pen name Voltaire. Beyond his written work Voltaire was an outspoken advocate for the freedom of religion, expression, and the separation of church and state. He used his versatile literary work as a tool to criticize the Catholic Church and overall intolerant French society. Voltaire’s cynical writing reached its highest potential in his rapid-fire satire Candide, or Optimism. In the novella, Voltaire told the story of Candide – a young man on a quest for happiness and spiritual fulfillment who encountered tragic setbacks that eventually led to bitter disillusionment. The purpose of Candide was to mock philosophers of the
...he Age of Enlightenment in his writing. He is initially trying to show that El Dorado is a successful village where the philosophy behind scientific breakthroughs from the scientific revolution were applied to politics and religion. Which means that science, religion, and philosophy coexist in the nation of El Dorado. This was something that most of Europe was trying to do at the time, yet many people fell to the Catholic Church and their rulers to persecution over their practices. Voltaire had witnessed these things in France and is what really drove him to begin writing about the journey made by Candide to find Miss Cunégonde. Through his writing, he is able to express his philosophy and beliefs of how he believed Europe should truly be.
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
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.”
Voltaire, , and Roger Pearson. Candide: And Other Stories. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1990. Print
Many classic books of literature of the French Enlightenment era comes from the famous author Francois-Marie Arouet, better known as his pen name, Voltaire.The French author was born on November 21st, 1694 and died May 30th, 1778 in the city of Paris. He started school at the Jesuit College of Louis-le-Grand at the age of 10 and graduated in 1711 with a motive of being a writer. However, Voltaire’s father did not agree with his choice of study and wanted Voltaire to study law. He went back to school to study law for another two years after his graduation. Voltaire was sent to The Hague, Netherlands in order to act as a secretary to the French ambassador at the time. During his visit, he became infatuated with Catherine Olympe de Noyer. Due to his love affair, Voltaire was discharged from the Dutch country to France “disinherited, and threatened with exile to the New World.” (Stanley 67). A few years later, Voltaire was accused of writing two satiric poems against the French regime because of his reputation in writing and was imprisoned at the Bastille from 1717 to 1718. During the time spent inside the prison, Voltaire wrote the tragedy called the Oedipe. After being released, Voltaire adopted the new of De Voltaire due to the commonness of the original name. His father died in 1722 and was released from his control. Voltaire also met Jean-Jacques Rousseau, a Genevan philosopher, the same year in Brussels, Belgium. From 1726 to 1728, Voltaire was sentenced to another term in the Bastille and exiled to England due to an encounter with “his growing squadron of enemies and spearheaded Chevalier de Rohan” (Stanley 67). He met the author by the name of Jonathan Swift during his exile. Voltaire was able to re-enter France in 1729, and p...
Overall Voltaire is successful in promoting his ideas and beliefs. It is clear he wants to see a drastic change in religion, politics and morals in the pre-modern period. Throughout his novel Candide he is able to criticise society with a light hearted mockery but also with a seriousness using extreme examples to address his points and concerns. It is arguable that his ambitions were far too high at a time of hope and debate in the 18th century.
Though he was by no means a pessimist, Voltaire refused to believe that what happens is always for the best. The Age of Enlightenment is a term applied to a wide variety of ideas and advances in the fields of philosophy, science, and medicine. The primary feature of Enlightenment philosophy is the belief that people can actively work to create a better world. A spirit of social reform characterized the political ideology of Enlightenment philosophers. While Voltaire’s Candide is heavily characterized by the primary concerns of the Enlightenment, it also criticizes certain aspects of the movement.
Frautschi, R.L. Barron's Simplified Approach to Voltaire: Candide. New York: Barron's Educational Series, Inc., 1998.
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.
... to make you commit injustices.” Voltaire studied natural sciences and reason because he was against supestition. 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”.
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.
Throughout the book, Voltaire critiqued Leibniz theory that we live in the “best of all possible worlds.” Pangloss was our optimist philosopher, who contended for the Leibniz theory. He argued that, “since everything was made for a purpose, everything is necessarily for the best purpose” (Voltaire, 16). After Candide was beaten, his love raped, his tutor sick with syphilis; After earthquakes, shipwrecks, slavery, being exiled, and l...