Voltaire was one of the leading French thinkers of the 18th century's Age of Enlightenment. A philosopher, writer, deist, essayist, and satirist, he is famous for Philosophical Letters, and Candide, in which he satirizes man's blind optimism.
Early Years
Voltaire, whose real name is Francois-Marie Arouet (1694-1778), was born to a wealthy family on November 21, in Paris. Intended for the legal profession, he went to a college run by Jesuit priests studying law but rebelled against his family's wishes to pursue a literary career.
He was imprisoned in the Bastille for penning libelous poems, during which time he wrote tragedies and adopted the name of Voltaire. After a second spell in prison, he quit France for England to avoid more trouble, and there he came under the lasting influence of the works of John Locke and Isaac Newton.
Influence of Locke and Newton
Following Locke and Newton, Voltaire championed reason over superstition and, thinking he held deistic beliefs, denounced the power of the clergy. Out of this came what proved to be his greatest intellectual project of his time, the Encyclopaedia edited by Diderot and Jean d'Alembert. The Encyclopaedia was to cause more controversy for Voltaire. It was considered to be a challenge to faith by encouraging people to look to the power of reason.
The Age of Reason
Voltaire's constant criticism of the Catholic Church and the French government got him into serious trouble. He became a strong voice for freedom of expression, alongside his championing of reason. He wrote many satires on what he saw as the abuse of power by society's elite, inevitably bringing himself deeper into conflict with society's elite.
In his Philosophical Dictionary, he views religion as he relates it to the qualities of a theist: "…for the simple worship of a God has preceded all the systems of the world. He speaks a language that all peoples understand, while they do not understand one another." It is small wonder the Church found him a vexation.
But Voltaire's interests were much wider than theology. During his time in England, he had also greatly admired the English constitution.
Voltaire's Legacy
As a philosopher, Voltaire is not by his own work particularly original. However, he must be included in any Western thought for the enormous influence of his writings. Voltaire did more than any philosopher to popularize and instigate 'the age of reason.' His style is readable, provocative and witty. He had enormous influence on European society long after his death.
Works by Voltaire
- Charles XII, 1731
- Philosophical Letters, 1733
- Treatise on Metaphysics, 1734
- Semiramis, 1748
- Candide, 1759
- A Treatise on Toleration, 1763
- Tancredi, 1760
- Philosophical Dictionary, 1764
- Irene, 1778
Sources:
Biographical Dictionary, edited by Una Mcgovern, Chambers (2002)
Illustrated Biographical Dictionary, edited by John Clark, Chancellor Press (1994)
Philosophy, the Great Thinkers, by Philip Stokes, Capella (2007)
