“What a chain of shocking accidents!” exclaimed Candide. “But, after all I still have some diamonds left, with which I can easily buy Miss Cunégonde’s liberty. It is a pity, though, she is grown so very ugly.”Eternal optimist Candide goes on a journey around the world only to discover that he does not live in the best of all possible worlds. Thrown out of his home for daring to kiss the baron’s daughter Cunégonde, our hero wanders through Europe, the Americas, and the Ottoman Empir...

The empire of Russia is the largest in the whole globe, extending from west to east upwards of two thousand common leagues of France, and about eight hundred in its greatest breadth from north to south. It borders upon Poland and the Frozen Sea, and joins to Sweden and China. Its length from the island of Dago, in the westernmost part of Livonia, to its most eastern limits, takes in near one hundred and seventy degrees, so that when it is noon in the western parts of the empire, it is near...

Ever since 1759, when Voltaire wrote "Candide" in ridicule of the notion that this is the best of all possible worlds, this world has been a gayer place for readers. Voltaire wrote it in three days, and five or six generations have found that its laughter does not grow old. "Candide" has not aged. Yet how different the book would have looked if Voltaire had written it a hundred and fifty years later than 1759. It would have been, among other things, a book of sights and sounds. A modern wr...

In "Voltaire's Philosophical Dictionary," the esteemed Enlightenment thinker critiques and examines a range of philosophical topics, from religion and morality to science and government. Employing a distinct literary style characterized by wit, irony, and eloquent prose, Voltaire's work serves as both a compendium of Enlightenment thought and a caustic commentary on societal norms. Each entry is infused with his trademark skepticism, encouraging readers to question established doctrines an...

Zadig, or The Book of Fate is a work of philosophical fiction written by Enlightenment philosopher Voltaire. It tells the story of Zadig, a philosopher in ancient Babylonia. The author does not attempt any historical accuracy, and some of the problems Zadig faces are thinly disguised references to social and political problems of Voltaire's own day.

Candide, ou l'Optimisme (1759) is a French satire by the Enlightenment philosopher Voltaire, English translations of which have been titled Candide: Or, All for the Best (1759); Candide: Or, The Optimist (1762); and Candide: Or, Optimism (1947). The novella begins with a young man, Candide, who is living a sheltered life in an Edenic paradise and being indoctrinated with Leibnizian optimism (or simply optimism) by his tutor, Pangloss. The work describes the abrupt cessation of this existen...

Voltaire's Treatise on Toleration is one of the most important essays on religious tolerance and freedom of thoughtA powerful, impassioned case for the values of freedom of conscience and religious tolerance, Treatise on Toleration was written after the Toulouse merchant Jean Calas was falsely accused of murdering his son and executed on the wheel in 1762. As it became clear that Calas had been persecuted by 'an irrational mob' for being a Protest...

Voltaire's The History of Peter the Great, Emperor of Russia is at once a political biography, a work of Enlightenment historiography, and a meditation on civilization's progress through reform. Written in a lucid, elegant prose characteristic of Voltaire's historical method, the book presents Peter not merely as a conqueror, but as a transformative sovereign who forced Russia into dialogue with Europe. Its literary context lies among eighteenth-century histories that sought moral, philoso...

Candide is the story of a gentle man who, though pummeled and slapped in every direction by fate, clings desperately to the belief that he lives in "the best of all possible worlds." On the surface a witty, bantering tale, this eighteenth-century classic is actually a savage, satiric thrust at the philosophical optimism that proclaims that all disaster and human suffering is part of a benevolent cosmic plan. Fast, funny, often outrageous, the French philosopher's immortal narrative takes C...

In 'The Philosophy of Voltaire - Essential Works,' the author compiles seminal essays and writings that encapsulate the wit and satirical brilliance of the Enlightenment figure, Voltaire. Through his incisive prose, Voltaire critiques established norms, religious dogmas, and societal injustices, employing a range of literary styles including essays, plays, and poetry. This collection showcases his distinctive use of irony and humor, establishing him as a pivotal voice of reason in a rapidl...

Voltaire keskin zekâsı ve üstün kalem gücüyle çağının acımasız sansür ve ceza koşullarından sıyrılarak kendini özgürce ifade etmenin en etkili yolunu Sözlük yazarak bulmuştur. 40 maddesinden yararlanarak hazırlanan KÜÇÜK FELSEFE SÖZLÜĞÜ’nün temeli olan Felsefe Sözlüğü bu çabanın en ölümsüz ürünüdür.Katı otoriteleri, bağnaz yönetimleri, tanımlar arasında yaptığı çeşitli gönderme oyunlarıyla aldatan Voltaire, en sert muhalefetini önemsiz ve hafif gibi görünen sözlük maddelerine anali...

The Essential Works of Voltaire gathers the defining writings of the Enlightenment's most incisive polemicist: philosophical tales, satirical fiction, letters, essays, and interventions against superstition, fanaticism, and political cruelty. Works such as Candide reveal his crystalline prose, ironic compression, and devastating comic timing, while his historical and philosophical writings place reason, tolerance, and empirical skepticism at the center of public life. The collection situat...