Philosophical Letters

Voltaire

jan 1961 · Newcomb Livraria Press

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A new translation directly from the original French manuscript of Voltaire's 1734 Philosophical Letters (original title "Lettres Philosophiques"). 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. Dubbed the "manifesto of the Enlightenment ", this work was a major intellectual and polemical report on English modernity, published throughout Europe in 20,000 copies, an extremely high figure at the time. In Paris, its praise of "English liberty and tolerance" was seen as an attack on government and religion. Written in 1734, it's also known as "Letters Concerning the English Nation." In this series of essays, Voltaire discusses his observations from his stay in England. He makes comparisons between the English system and French institutions, especially noting the freedoms and tolerances he observed in England. The book was condemned by the Jansenist-majority Parliament and burned at the bottom of the Grand Staircase of the Palais. A lettre de cachet was then issued against Voltaire, and Émilie du Châtelet offered him refuge in the Château de Cirey in Champagne. This work was written during a time when Voltaire was exiled to England by the French Monarchy, where he was introduced to the ideas of English Empiricist philosophers such as John Locke as well as the new Physics of Isaac Newton. The Philosophical Letters is a series of letters written to a fictional correspondent in France, in which Voltaire compares the political and intellectual climate of England to that of France. The work was important because it introduced English ideas to the French intellectual elite, and helped to inspire a wave of cultural and political reforms in France along with Rousseau's push for democracy and freedom of speech. This manuscript is a critical link between the English Empiricist thinkers such as Lock and Hume, and the new French Materialists.

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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.