Voltaire (1694- 1778): Voltaire was originally named Fransua, and Mary Arouet (Fran? ois-Marie Arouet)； Voltaire is his pen name. Voltaire was the standard-bearer of the French bourgeois enlightenment in the18th century, and was known as "the king of ideas" and "the best poet in France". He was born in a wealthy middle-class family in Paris and received a good education since childhood. His father is a legal notary, hoping that he will become a judge in the future, but he became interested in literature and later became a scholar. Voltaire experienced the rule of Louis XIV, XV and XVI, witnessed the decline of feudal absolutism from prosperity, and personally felt the decadent and reactionary rule of feudal absolutism. He deeply; He foresaw that the revolution would come, so he said to his friends, "Everything around me is sowing the seeds of revolution. Although I may not be a witness to the revolution myself, it will definitely come. "
Voltaire was quick-thinking and versatile. His works are famous for their sharp language and satirical style. He said, "Laughter can conquer everything. This is the most powerful weapon. " He was twice thrown into the Bastille for satirizing feudal absolutism. His books were banned and he himself was deported many times. He was forced into exile in England from 65438 to 0725, and became interested in the politics and culture of the British bourgeoisie. He studied the British bourgeois constitutional monarchy, Locke's materialist empiricism and Newton's theory of universal gravitation.
Voltaire wrote a large number of literary works, among which the famous ones are the epic Henry Yade, The Girl in Orleans, the tragedy Odeber, the comedy The dissolute Son and the philosophical novel The Honest Man. He also wrote many historical works, such as Louis XIV and On the Customs and Spirits of All Ethnic Groups. In philosophy, his representative works include Dictionary of Philosophy, Metaphysics and Principles of 4 Newton's Philosophy, among which the most influential work is Philosophical Exchange, which is called "the first bomb thrown into the old system".
Voltaire's extraordinary intelligence, keen thinking and exposure of dark feudal absolutism made him enjoy high prestige among the people. The ruler wants to use him, too. Louis XV asked him to be a court historian, Frederick II of Prussia treated him as a guest of honor, and Catherine II of Russia received him, but in the end, his rebellion broke with his thoughts. The painful experience made him decide not to associate with any king again.
Voltaire sharply criticized the dark rule of Cardiff Cardinal Conference. He compared the Pope to a biped, called the priest a "civilized villain" and called Catholicism "the most shameful deception trap set by some cunning people". He called on "everyone to fight the appalling religious fanaticism in their own way, and some people bit his ears;" Some people stepped on his stomach, and some people scolded him from a distance. "But Voltaire is not an atheist, but a deist. He believes that he wants to rule the people; Religion is indispensable. He said, "Even without God; We must also create a god. "
Voltaire believed in the theory of natural rights, believing that "people are equal in essence" and demanding that everyone enjoy "natural rights". He advocates that everyone is equal before the law, but he thinks that the inequality of property rights is inevitable. He idealized the British constitutional monarchy, and thought that the most ideal thing was an "enlightened" monarch to govern the country according to the opinions of philosophers. Philosophically, he acknowledged the objective existence of the material world and affirmed that knowledge originated from sensory experience, but he also believed that God was the "first promoter" of the universe. He despises the working people, thinking that they can only do rough work and can't think, saying, "When the people think, everything will be over."
As a bourgeois thinker, Voltaire has limitations in all aspects, which is not surprising. Because he is also deeply branded with the brand of his time and class. However, his great contribution to the anti-feudal enlightenment is still worthy of people's eternal commemoration.
Voltaire's literary views and interests basically inherited the legacy of classicism in the17th century, mainly in the creation of poems and tragedies. His epic "Henry Yade" (1728) takes the religious war in France in the 6th century as the theme, and writes that Henry IV of Bourbon dynasty ascended the throne after the victory of the civil war, and issued an amnesty in the south to protect the religious freedom of Protestants. Henry IV in the epic is regarded as a model of enlightened monarch. Voltaire's philosophical poems are thorough in reasoning, and satirical poems are witty, calm and unique. Voltaire was mainly engaged in drama creation in his life, and wrote more than 50 plays, most of which were tragedies. The most valuable of Voltaire's literary works is philosophical novels. This is a new genre initiated by him, telling absurd stories in a playful style, insinuating satirical reality and clarifying profound philosophy.
Voltaire settled in Fahrne Manor on the French-Swiss border in his later years.
In the meantime, religious factional struggles occurred in France, which led to a large number of escapes. Voltaire took in hundreds of refugees in his manor. He also repeatedly resisted injustice, upheld justice for the poor and rehabilitated unjust cases. The most influential event is the Kara incident.
17611kloc-0/013 A terrible tragedy happened in a house in Filati Street in Toulouse.
The owner of this family, Jean Kara, is a respected Huguenot businessman.
Late that night, Jean Carla found his eldest son, marc anthony, hanging himself in the shop. At that time, the whole family panicked, and his mother burst into tears, which alarmed the neighbors. Suddenly, someone in the crowd said, "marc anthony was killed by his parents because he chose Catholicism."
Catholicism and Protestantism experienced a religious war in the16th century, which has been more than 200 years, but the opposition is still very sharp. After hearing the news, a judge in Toulouse arrested everyone who was at home on the night of the "murder" without investigating, interrogating or even looking at the scene.
Why did marc anthony commit suicide? It turned out that at the age of 28, he studied law and wanted to be a lawyer, but he was forced to engage in business because he could not get a Catholic certificate. He wanted to get some money from his father to do business, but his father refused. Disappointed, he went to the cafe every day to drown his sorrows. Later, because he was in debt, he felt that his future was bleak and he found a short-sighted idea.
How can an old man with gray hair and nearly sixty years old hang a strong young man? The crime of "murder" is obviously difficult to establish. Prosecutor Di Ku righteously appeared in court to defend old Carla, but was suspended for three months. Lawyer Huddle tried to clarify the truth, but the judge, who was in a frenzy of excitement, ignored it and thought the lawyer was incompetent. The presiding judge abused his power and forced Kara to give up his partner. Kara said flatly, "Since there is no crime, how can there be an accomplice?"
1762, 10 In March, the court rudely sentenced Kara to dismantle the car regardless of all the evidence of innocence. Before the execution, old Carla said bitterly, "I have told the truth, and I died innocently ..."
Shortly after the incident, Voltaire heard all kinds of rumors. He has always been skeptical about the church, believing that Catholicism and Protestantism are shameless people. The tragic experience of the old man Kara aroused his great indignation against the church and judicial authorities, and he was determined to fight for safeguarding human dignity and freedom of belief.
Through various channels, he calmly investigated and collected evidence in person, summoned Carla's two sons exiled to Geneva to Ferné, and compared the details they provided with the reflections they heard from passing passengers, thus making a personal judgment on the whole incident.
In the meantime, he published the confessions of the two brothers Carla, wrote a pamphlet to expose this inhuman injustice, and provided all the expenses for Mrs Carla to take her to Paris, so as to attract the attention of public opinion.
1February 3, 763, Voltaire wrote an appeal in his own hand and made the conclusion that "I am sure this family is innocent". On March 7, the Privy Council ordered a retrial of the case, and Carla, the wronged old man, and his family were finally rehabilitated.
At the end of this year, Voltaire published the famous "On Religious Tolerance", which lashed out at the religious persecution of reactionary churches and the dark phenomenon that authoritarian regimes ignored human life, and expounded his idealism and materialism.
Later, he also ran for the 19-year-old knight Labar and Mr. sylvain, who was over half a year old, who were also persecuted by the church, and finally rehabilitated these two cases.
Throughout his later years, Voltaire engaged in a great deal of creation with more vigorous fighting spirit, and successively wrote 6 13 entries for the encyclopedia, which was compiled into a book in 1764 and published under the title of "Dictionary of Philosophy". In addition, he also published philosophical novels Chadiger, Naive Man, Historical Works, Russian History under Peter the Great and On Parliament.
It is worth mentioning that during his settlement in Fernai, he kept frequent correspondence with people from all walks of life in European countries. According to statistics, more than 10,000 letters of Voltaire have been preserved, and as many as 700 people corresponded with him. In this way, he discussed various social problems with his correspondents and publicized his anti-authoritarian and anti-church enlightenment thoughts. Voltaire's tireless struggle won him great fame. His name resounded all over Europe, and many celebrities came here to inquire about him. Fernand became the center of European public opinion, and the progressives at that time addressed Voltaire as "the patriarch of Fernand".
1778 February, 84-year-old Voltaire returned to Paris after 28 years' absence. As soon as the news spread, the whole city was a sensation. Some young people who have only heard his name but have never seen him are even more ecstatic, flocking to his place of residence, making the surrounding streets crowded. When he passed by, the women secretly pulled a hair or two from his fur coat and kept it as a sacred object.
In Paris, Voltaire was so excited that he was forced to stay in bed because of uremia. However, he insisted on dictating the last five-act poetic tragedy Irena. Although the script is unremarkable, Paris and Versailles reacted strongly during the performance. The Queen attended the performance, and Voltaire also dragged his sick body to enjoy this final honor and happiness at the scene.
Church people have ulterior motives and want to use Voltaire's prestige to improve their social status, so they try their best to make some money from Voltaire's illness.
One day, a priest sneaked into Voltaire's ward and asked Voltaire to make his last confession. Although Voltaire was not an atheist, but a deist, he was always at odds with the church. He knew the priest's purpose very well and sent him away rudely.
A few days later, another abbot named Morey did the same thing again. Voltaire saw him come in and asked:
"Dad, where are you from?"
"Ah, sir, I am sent by God!"
"Really? Can you show me God's letter? "
Although Voltaire was seriously ill, he still kept a clear head and mercilessly exposed the ugly faces of these "wolves in robes" with his unique spicy irony.
/kloc-in may of 0/2, Voltaire's hemoptysis continued, and his body temperature rose sharply. The Duke of Richelieu couldn't bear to see his old friend suffer like this, so he sent him tincture of opium. Voltaire was confused and drank all the sedatives with remarkable efficacy. While he was in a coma, three priests broke in. When he was a little sober, they asked him if he recognized the sanctity of Christ. Voltaire has given a negative answer in the Dictionary of Philosophy. When he heard the words "Christ" and "Holy", he flew into a rage, made an amazing move, propped up the sick body, pushed the priest angrily and said, "Let me die in peace."
Voltaire died on1on the afternoon of May 30th, 978 1 1. The reactionary church hated this blasphemous old enemy and ordered his body to be transported out of Paris overnight and abandoned.
However, Voltaire's contribution to the French Enlightenment in the18th century is undeniable. He was recognized as the leader and mentor of the people for most of his life. His thoughts and theories will educate generations, lay a theoretical foundation for the anti-feudal struggle and arm the minds of the French people for the coming bourgeois revolution.
After the bourgeois revolution, Voltaire's bones were buried in the Great Men's Cemetery.
The Enlightenment is the second cultural movement of the western bourgeoisie after the Renaissance in the18th century. It opposes the theocracy of the church and feudal autocracy, pursues political and academic freedom, advocates science and technology, and takes reason as the basis of thought and behavior. The word "enlightenment" is Aufkl in German? Rung, English for enlightenment, means enlightenment. In the Enlightenment, it was extended to use the brilliance of modern philosophy and literary knowledge to illuminate the ignorant and backward society caused by the superstition and deception of church and aristocratic autocracy and restore rational authority. Enlightenment is not only carried out in the cultural field, but also involves economy, politics, law, science, philosophy, social system and social fashion.
The Enlightenment took place after the death of Louis XIV in France and before the bourgeois revolution in France. Although the Renaissance struggled with the church and feudal rule for 300 to 400 years from 13 and 14 centuries to 15 and 16 centuries, Christian churches and feudal nobles ruled in Europe for more than a thousand years and were deeply rooted. At that time, industry and commerce had not developed on a large scale, and the bourgeoisie was still in a helpless position, weak in strength, incomplete in revolution, and easy to compromise with reactionary forces. The social development of western European countries is very uneven. /kloc-in the 0/7th century, France was in the so-called "big century", that is, the 14th century of Louis, and it was also a century in which feudal nobles and senior church monks joined hands to be autocratic. The bourgeoisie and the common people are the "third class" and are still in a position without power. Culture and education are entirely in the hands of Catholic Jesuit monks, who monopolize the Bible and a few Latin classical works. The public is in a state of considerable ignorance. This is the historical background of the Enlightenment.
/kloc-in the 0/8th century, the economic and political situation began to change dramatically. France and Britain face each other across the sea, and France lags behind Britain for a century economically and politically. Britain has maritime hegemony and developed industry and commerce; The bourgeoisie stepped onto the political stage and started the industrial revolution; The working class is increasingly active; The rise of the political Charter Movement laid the foundation of parliamentary democracy. In literature, after Shakespeare, Richardson and Stern appeared new novels featuring citizens. French encyclopedic leaders Voltaire, Montesquieu and Rousseau all lived in England. They established close friendship with British empiricist philosophers such as Locke and Hume. They all appreciate the separation of powers and parliamentary democracy in Britain. The French Encyclopedia compiled by Diderot, an enlightenment thinker, was inspired by the encyclopaedia of spreading modern philosophy and scientific knowledge compiled by Chambers in England.
During the 20 years of encyclopedia activities in France, they were constantly attacked and persecuted by reactionary forces. Some people were put in prison, while others were forced into exile. Encyclopedias are prohibited from being published or burned. At that time, the prosecutor accused the Encyclopedia School in the Supreme Court that "they formed a group that supported materialism, destroyed religion, advocated independence and freedom, and corrupted customs". But the encyclopedia finally came out 1772. From 65438 to 0789, the bourgeois revolution broke out in France. Condorcet, one of the leaders of Encyclopedia School, took part in this revolution and was elected as a court member of the revolutionary government. During the revolution, the two Declarations of Human Rights both declared that human rights are human's natural gifts (that is, innate rights), including "equality, freedom, security and property", which embodied the ideal of encyclopedic school. Thus, the Enlightenment made the necessary ideological preparations for the French bourgeois revolution. Engels pointed out in the introduction of anti-Turin that "modern socialism ... in terms of its theoretical form, it was initially manifested as a further and seemingly more thorough development of various principles put forward by the great French enlightenment scholars in the18th century".