A Treatise on Metaphysics

Voltaire

Newcomb Livraria Press

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A new 2023 translation directly from the original French manuscript of Voltaire's 1734 Treatise on Metaphysics. This edition also contains supplemental material on Voltaire including an afterword by the translator, a timeline of Voltaire's life and works, summaries of each of the works in his corpus, and a glossary of Philosophic Terminology used by Voltaire. This Treatise was an attempt to reconcile the philosophical systems of Descartes and Leibniz, and to establish a new system of metaphysics based on reason and systematic observation (Cartesianism). This work is a major publication personifying Enlightenment rationalism and solidified Voltaire as a major thinker in the Enlightenment. The work also laid the foundation for Voltaire's later ideas about the importance of reason and science in society.

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Voltaire (1694-1778), born François-Marie Arouet, was a towering figure in the European Enlightenment, renowned for his wit, satirical genius, and fierce advocacy of civil liberties, including freedom of religion and free trade. Born on November 21, 1694, in Paris, Voltaire was educated by the Jesuits at the Collège Louis-le-Grand, where he demonstrated an early talent in literature and theater. Despite a brief stint studying law, he devoted himself to writing, rapidly gaining fame for his sharp wit and eloquence. Voltaire's literary career was marked by numerous conflicts with French authorities, leading to periods of imprisonment and exile. His most famous stay at the Bastille prison was due to his satirical verse, which mocked the French Regent. This propensity for critique often saw him in conflict with the establishment, but it also earned him a reputation as a champion of the oppressed and a critic of religious and political dogma, including the Atheistic dogmatism of the French Revolution.