Voltaire Quotes

French writer, historian and philosopher (1694–1778)

François-Marie Arouet (21 November 169430 May 1778), known by his nom de plume Voltaire, was a French Enlightenment writer, philosopher (philosophe), satirist, and historian. Famous for his wit and his criticism of Christianity (especially of the Roman Catholic Church) and of slavery, Voltaire was an advocate of freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and separation of church and state. Voltaire was a versatile and prolific writer, producing works in almost every literary form, including plays, poems, novels, essays, histories, and even scientific expositions. He wrote more than 20,000 letters and 2,000 books and pamphlets. Voltaire was one of the first authors to become renowned and commercially successful internationally. He was an outspoken advocate of civil liberties and was at constant risk from the strict censorship laws of the Catholic French monarchy. His polemics witheringly satirized intolerance and religious dogma, as well as the French institutions of his day. His best-known work and magnum opus, Candide, is a novella that comments on, criticizes, and ridicules many events, thinkers and philosophies of his time, most notably Gottfried Leibniz and his belief that our world is of necessity the "best of all possible worlds".

From: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Alternative Names: Dictador de letras • François-Marie Arouet • François Marie Arouet • Benedictina

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I read only to please myself, and enjoy only what suits my taste.

Opinion rules the world, but in the long run it is the philosophers who shape opinion

On en trouve [l'argent] toujours quand il s'agit d'aller faire tuer des hommes sur la frontière: il n'y en a plus quand il faut les sauver.

Everything's fine today, that is our illusion.

السر في كونك شخصا مثيرا للملل، هو أنك تقول كل شيء!

If you want to know who rules over you, just look for who you are not allowed to criticize.

الكتب كالبشر .. قليل منها يلعب دورا عظيما

I asked my guide how it was possible the judicious part of them could suffer such incoherent prating? "We are obliged," said he, "to suffer it, because no one knows, when a brother rises up to hold forth, whether he will be moved by the spirit or by folly. In this uncertainty, we listen patiently to every one. We even allow our women to speak in public; two or three of them are often inspired at the same time, and then a most charming noise is heard in the Lord's house." "You have no priests, then?" said I. "No, no, friend," replied the Quaker; "heaven make us thankful!" Then opening one of the books of their sect, he read the following words in an emphatic tone: "'God forbid we should presume to ordain any one to receive the Holy Spirit on the Lord's day, in exclusion to the rest of the faithful!'

Sa réputation s'affermira toujours, parce qu'on ne le lit guère.

إن الذي يقول لك اعتقد ما أعتقده أنا وإلا لعنك الله‏، لا يلبث أن يقول‏:‏ اعتقد ما أعتقده أنا وإلا قتلتك‏.

It is sometimes said, common sense is very rare.

All is for the best in the best of possible worlds.

Our labour preserves us from three great evils — weariness, vice, and want.

Don't think money does everything or you are going to end up doing everything for money.

Use, do not abuse; neither abstinence nor excess ever renders man happy.

Voltaire Quotes

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