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Lettere Filosofiche o Lettere Inglesi
Voltaire was a colorful figure in Paris in the time just before both France and America began turbulent revolutions for their freedom. Voltaire was a 17th century writer philosopher and supporter of social reform. He spoke openly in defense of civil liberties and freedom of religion. His satires often poked fun at the Catholic Church and other French institutions. Voltaire along with other authors of the Enlightenment period was influencal in the American and French Revolutions. Voltaire was a prolific letter writer having written over 21,000 letters. As a young outspoken poet in Paris, Voltaire was often in trouble with the crown. In 1717 his satirical writing got him locked up in the Bastille for a year. In 1731 he published Lettres sur les Anglais. These letters appeared in England two years later. The collection of his letters is an excellent resource for historians of the period.
166 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1733
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Voltaire
9,470 books4,990 followersComplete works (1880) : https://archive.org/details/oeuvresco...
In 1694, Age of Enlightenment leader Francois-Marie Arouet, known as Voltaire, was born in Paris. Jesuit-educated, he began writing clever verses by the age of 12. He launched a lifelong, successful playwriting career in 1718, interrupted by imprisonment in the Bastille. Upon a second imprisonment, in which Francois adopted the pen name Voltaire, he was released after agreeing to move to London. There he wrote Lettres philosophiques (1733), which galvanized French reform. The book also satirized the religious teachings of Rene Descartes and Blaise Pascal, including Pascal's famed "wager" on God. Voltaire wrote: "The interest I have in believing a thing is not a proof of the existence of that thing." Voltaire's French publisher was sent to the Bastille and Voltaire had to escape from Paris again, as judges sentenced the book to be "torn and burned in the Palace." Voltaire spent a calm 16 years with his deistic mistress, Madame du Chatelet, in Lorraine. He met the 27 year old married mother when he was 39. In his memoirs, he wrote: "I found, in 1733, a young woman who thought as I did, and decided to spend several years in the country, cultivating her mind." He dedicated Traite de metaphysique to her. In it the Deist candidly rejected immortality and questioned belief in God. It was not published until the 1780s. Voltaire continued writing amusing but meaty philosophical plays and histories. After the earthquake that leveled Lisbon in 1755, in which 15,000 people perished and another 15,000 were wounded, Voltaire wrote Poème sur le désastre de Lisbonne (Poem on the Lisbon Disaster): "But how conceive a God supremely good/ Who heaps his favours on the sons he loves,/ Yet scatters evil with as large a hand?"
Voltaire purchased a chateau in Geneva, where, among other works, he wrote Candide (1759). To avoid Calvinist persecution, Voltaire moved across the border to Ferney, where the wealthy writer lived for 18 years until his death. Voltaire began to openly challenge Christianity, calling it "the infamous thing." He wrote Frederick the Great: "Christianity is the most ridiculous, the most absurd, and bloody religion that has ever infected the world." Voltaire ended every letter to friends with "Ecrasez l'infame" (crush the infamy — the Christian religion). His pamphlet, The Sermon on the Fifty (1762) went after transubstantiation, miracles, biblical contradictions, the Jewish religion, and the Christian God. Voltaire wrote that a true god "surely cannot have been born of a girl, nor died on the gibbet, nor be eaten in a piece of dough," or inspired "books, filled with contradictions, madness, and horror." He also published excerpts of Testament of the Abbe Meslier, by an atheist priest, in Holland, which advanced the Enlightenment. Voltaire's Philosophical Dictionary was published in 1764 without his name. Although the first edition immediately sold out, Geneva officials, followed by Dutch and Parisian, had the books burned. It was published in 1769 as two large volumes. Voltaire campaigned fiercely against civil atrocities in the name of religion, writing pamphlets and commentaries about the barbaric execution of a Huguenot trader, who was first broken at the wheel, then burned at the stake, in 1762. Voltaire's campaign for justice and restitution ended with a posthumous retrial in 1765, during which 40 Parisian judges declared the defendant innocent. Voltaire urgently tried to save the life of Chevalier de la Barre, a 19 year old sentenced to death for blasphemy for failing to remove his hat during a religious procession. In 1766, Chevalier was beheaded after being tortured, then his body was burned, along with a copy of Voltaire's Philosophical Dictionary. Voltaire's statue at the Pantheon was melted down during Nazi occupation. D. 1778.
Voltaire (1694-1778), pseudónimo de François-
In 1694, Age of Enlightenment leader Francois-Marie Arouet, known as Voltaire, was born in Paris. Jesuit-educated, he began writing clever verses by the age of 12. He launched a lifelong, successful playwriting career in 1718, interrupted by imprisonment in the Bastille. Upon a second imprisonment, in which Francois adopted the pen name Voltaire, he was released after agreeing to move to London. There he wrote Lettres philosophiques (1733), which galvanized French reform. The book also satirized the religious teachings of Rene Descartes and Blaise Pascal, including Pascal's famed "wager" on God. Voltaire wrote: "The interest I have in believing a thing is not a proof of the existence of that thing." Voltaire's French publisher was sent to the Bastille and Voltaire had to escape from Paris again, as judges sentenced the book to be "torn and burned in the Palace." Voltaire spent a calm 16 years with his deistic mistress, Madame du Chatelet, in Lorraine. He met the 27 year old married mother when he was 39. In his memoirs, he wrote: "I found, in 1733, a young woman who thought as I did, and decided to spend several years in the country, cultivating her mind." He dedicated Traite de metaphysique to her. In it the Deist candidly rejected immortality and questioned belief in God. It was not published until the 1780s. Voltaire continued writing amusing but meaty philosophical plays and histories. After the earthquake that leveled Lisbon in 1755, in which 15,000 people perished and another 15,000 were wounded, Voltaire wrote Poème sur le désastre de Lisbonne (Poem on the Lisbon Disaster): "But how conceive a God supremely good/ Who heaps his favours on the sons he loves,/ Yet scatters evil with as large a hand?"
Voltaire purchased a chateau in Geneva, where, among other works, he wrote Candide (1759). To avoid Calvinist persecution, Voltaire moved across the border to Ferney, where the wealthy writer lived for 18 years until his death. Voltaire began to openly challenge Christianity, calling it "the infamous thing." He wrote Frederick the Great: "Christianity is the most ridiculous, the most absurd, and bloody religion that has ever infected the world." Voltaire ended every letter to friends with "Ecrasez l'infame" (crush the infamy — the Christian religion). His pamphlet, The Sermon on the Fifty (1762) went after transubstantiation, miracles, biblical contradictions, the Jewish religion, and the Christian God. Voltaire wrote that a true god "surely cannot have been born of a girl, nor died on the gibbet, nor be eaten in a piece of dough," or inspired "books, filled with contradictions, madness, and horror." He also published excerpts of Testament of the Abbe Meslier, by an atheist priest, in Holland, which advanced the Enlightenment. Voltaire's Philosophical Dictionary was published in 1764 without his name. Although the first edition immediately sold out, Geneva officials, followed by Dutch and Parisian, had the books burned. It was published in 1769 as two large volumes. Voltaire campaigned fiercely against civil atrocities in the name of religion, writing pamphlets and commentaries about the barbaric execution of a Huguenot trader, who was first broken at the wheel, then burned at the stake, in 1762. Voltaire's campaign for justice and restitution ended with a posthumous retrial in 1765, during which 40 Parisian judges declared the defendant innocent. Voltaire urgently tried to save the life of Chevalier de la Barre, a 19 year old sentenced to death for blasphemy for failing to remove his hat during a religious procession. In 1766, Chevalier was beheaded after being tortured, then his body was burned, along with a copy of Voltaire's Philosophical Dictionary. Voltaire's statue at the Pantheon was melted down during Nazi occupation. D. 1778.
Voltaire (1694-1778), pseudónimo de François-
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November 26, 2025
Letters on England, a collection of letters written by Voltaire while living in exile in England, comprises Voltaire's observations on English politics, governance, religion, science, and literature. Coming from a country where its citizens are constantly suppressed and that they live practically under the thumb of the monarchy, aristocrats, and clergy, Voltaire was most appreciative of the freedom and liberty enjoyed by the British commoners. This is of course on a relative level. One mustn't misunderstand that there was a full liberty for citizens in England as we understand the word today. Comparatively, however, it was a much freer society to Voltaire coming from an oppressed one.
First and foremost, Voltaire was struck by the amount of religious freedom and tolerance exercised in England. "This is the land of sects. An Englishman, as a free man, goes to Heaven by whatever route he likes" says he, which is a total contrast to France where Catholicism dominated to the elimination of any other religious sect. The dominant Catholicism was intolerant of other religious views and was often cruel and unjust to them. According to Voltaire intolerance, injustice, and cruelty are the three most unforgivable sins. Voltaire, however, was an intelligent and a practical man and he understood that where there is one dominant religion, it is impossible, in any society, to achieve the sort of peace and harmony which he envisaged. "If there were only one religion in England there would be danger of despotism, if there were two they would cut each other’s throats, but there are thirty, and they live in peace and happiness." And in these satirical terms, Voltaire expresses the extent of religious harmony in English society. "Go into the London Stock Exchange...Here Jew, Mohammedan and Christian deal with each other as though they were all of the same faith, and only apply the word infidel to people who go bankrupt"!
Voltaire was full of praise for the governing system in England. "The English nation is the only one on earth which has succeeded in controlling the power of kings by resisting them, which by effort after effort has at last established this wise system of government in which the prince, all-powerful for doing good, has his hands tied for doing evil. The House of Lords and the Commons are the arbiters of the nation, the king is the super-arbiter." He believed that no other country in Europe, not even Rome, had steered a nation like England towards unity and good governance. And he expresses himself thus: "The outcome of civil wars in Rome was slavery, and that of the troubles in England liberty". " What becomes a revolution in England is only a sedition in other countries."
Voltaire was also impressed by the freedom enjoyed by English scientists and how unlike in France, didn't depend on a higher patronage. It was obvious from his letters that he simply adored Sir Isaac Newton, for nearly one-fifth of the letters are dedicated to him and explaining his theories. "If true greatness consists in having received from heaven a powerful genius and in having used it to enlighten himself and others, a man such as Newton, the like of whom is scarcely to be found in ten centuries, is the truly great man...It is to the man who rules over minds by the power of truth, not to those who enslave men by violence, it is to the man who understands the universe and not to those who disfigure it, that we owe our respect."
Voltaire's take on the literary men was most interesting. Of the great Bard, he writes: "He had a strong and fertile genius, full of naturalness and sublimity, without the slightest spark of good taste or the least knowledge of the rules." While thus dismissing Shakespeare, Voltaire proceeds to praise Congreve in these terms: "He only wrote a few plays but they are all excellent of their kind. The rules of the theatre are rigorously observed; the plays are full of characters differentiated with extreme subtlety, you don’t encounter the slightest coarse joke, everywhere you find the language of well-mannered people with the actions of rogues, which proves that he knew his world and lived in what is called good society." This, coming from the man who later wrote Candide, was quite amusing. It seems that this younger Voltaire was somewhat a moralist. :) The praise on Alexander Pope was quite welcoming to me. Being absolutely in love with his translation on Homer's Iliad and Odyssey, I was happy to hear Voltaire sing his praises:"Pope who is, I think, the most elegant, the most correct and, what is much more, the most musical poet England has ever had. He has reduced the harsh blarings of the English trumpet to the soft sounds of the flute."
Voltaire admired the status enjoyed by the scientists and literary men in England, whereas in France, the scientists and literary men had to play second fiddle to the nobility and clergy. "In England as a rule people think, and literature is more honoured than in France. This advantage is a natural outcome of the form of their government."
Through his letters, Voltaire exposes many areas in which France needs improving. However, these letters shouldn't be taken as observation of a young impressionable Voltaire. He was not biased. There are areas in England that hadn't escaped his critical eye. But on the whole, and comparatively, he was impressed by the amount of freedom enjoyed by his fellow men across the channel.
For my part, I gained a good insight into Voltaire through these letters, and through the introduction of this penguin edition. I wasn't a fan of Voltaire before, but I'm slowly becoming one. :)
More of my reviews can be found at http://piyangiejay.com/
First and foremost, Voltaire was struck by the amount of religious freedom and tolerance exercised in England. "This is the land of sects. An Englishman, as a free man, goes to Heaven by whatever route he likes" says he, which is a total contrast to France where Catholicism dominated to the elimination of any other religious sect. The dominant Catholicism was intolerant of other religious views and was often cruel and unjust to them. According to Voltaire intolerance, injustice, and cruelty are the three most unforgivable sins. Voltaire, however, was an intelligent and a practical man and he understood that where there is one dominant religion, it is impossible, in any society, to achieve the sort of peace and harmony which he envisaged. "If there were only one religion in England there would be danger of despotism, if there were two they would cut each other’s throats, but there are thirty, and they live in peace and happiness." And in these satirical terms, Voltaire expresses the extent of religious harmony in English society. "Go into the London Stock Exchange...Here Jew, Mohammedan and Christian deal with each other as though they were all of the same faith, and only apply the word infidel to people who go bankrupt"!
Voltaire was full of praise for the governing system in England. "The English nation is the only one on earth which has succeeded in controlling the power of kings by resisting them, which by effort after effort has at last established this wise system of government in which the prince, all-powerful for doing good, has his hands tied for doing evil. The House of Lords and the Commons are the arbiters of the nation, the king is the super-arbiter." He believed that no other country in Europe, not even Rome, had steered a nation like England towards unity and good governance. And he expresses himself thus: "The outcome of civil wars in Rome was slavery, and that of the troubles in England liberty". " What becomes a revolution in England is only a sedition in other countries."
Voltaire was also impressed by the freedom enjoyed by English scientists and how unlike in France, didn't depend on a higher patronage. It was obvious from his letters that he simply adored Sir Isaac Newton, for nearly one-fifth of the letters are dedicated to him and explaining his theories. "If true greatness consists in having received from heaven a powerful genius and in having used it to enlighten himself and others, a man such as Newton, the like of whom is scarcely to be found in ten centuries, is the truly great man...It is to the man who rules over minds by the power of truth, not to those who enslave men by violence, it is to the man who understands the universe and not to those who disfigure it, that we owe our respect."
Voltaire's take on the literary men was most interesting. Of the great Bard, he writes: "He had a strong and fertile genius, full of naturalness and sublimity, without the slightest spark of good taste or the least knowledge of the rules." While thus dismissing Shakespeare, Voltaire proceeds to praise Congreve in these terms: "He only wrote a few plays but they are all excellent of their kind. The rules of the theatre are rigorously observed; the plays are full of characters differentiated with extreme subtlety, you don’t encounter the slightest coarse joke, everywhere you find the language of well-mannered people with the actions of rogues, which proves that he knew his world and lived in what is called good society." This, coming from the man who later wrote Candide, was quite amusing. It seems that this younger Voltaire was somewhat a moralist. :) The praise on Alexander Pope was quite welcoming to me. Being absolutely in love with his translation on Homer's Iliad and Odyssey, I was happy to hear Voltaire sing his praises:"Pope who is, I think, the most elegant, the most correct and, what is much more, the most musical poet England has ever had. He has reduced the harsh blarings of the English trumpet to the soft sounds of the flute."
Voltaire admired the status enjoyed by the scientists and literary men in England, whereas in France, the scientists and literary men had to play second fiddle to the nobility and clergy. "In England as a rule people think, and literature is more honoured than in France. This advantage is a natural outcome of the form of their government."
Through his letters, Voltaire exposes many areas in which France needs improving. However, these letters shouldn't be taken as observation of a young impressionable Voltaire. He was not biased. There are areas in England that hadn't escaped his critical eye. But on the whole, and comparatively, he was impressed by the amount of freedom enjoyed by his fellow men across the channel.
For my part, I gained a good insight into Voltaire through these letters, and through the introduction of this penguin edition. I wasn't a fan of Voltaire before, but I'm slowly becoming one. :)
More of my reviews can be found at http://piyangiejay.com/
June 29, 2024
The letters had as French title: Lettres Philosophiques (“Philosophical letters” ).
These are a collection of letters regarding England in its many facets (religious, political, scientific and cultural). A 18th century Britain, Voltaire had been in for some time (1726-1729).
At least seven of the letters are dedicated to the religious issues. They touch on the diversity witnessed by the French philosopher. He would call it “a nation of sectarists”.
The very first letters are a sort of analysis of the (and meeting with) proponents of a, then, powerful movement/sect called the Quakers. They were persecuted under Charles II and they managed to convert some of the soldiers of Cromwell, who quit service and refused to take oaths.
Their belief was as radical and basic as this: it had been 1600 years of corruption, of the true teachings of Christ; one who never baptized, but was baptized by John. Quakers followed Christ, not John.
Voltaire met with one young Quaker man called George Fox: he would never “swear”.
And yet, Voltaire highlighted their overseas impact. I am referring William Penn (most "hated by the protestants") , who inherited “very large possessions (south of Maryland)” and established Quakers power in America; in Pennsylvania, namely . Voltaire says at that time “Philadelphia city was flourishing”.
Some other letters are an approach to other sects (the Unitarians, the Socinians, the Arians, the Antitrinitarians…), yet, outstanding: The Church of England, whose “true religion is the sect of Episcopalians”.
Differing from France’s “training”, all the clergy is educated (with “few exceptions”) in Oxford and Cambridge. Voltaire still mentions the Presbyterians, somehow similar to Calvinism, the established religion of Scotland.
The topic then moves into politics ---government, parliament and the monarchy---, having said, nevertheless, that the capital (London) was a place of “corruption and depravity”.
His political analysis is positive and with some taint of praise, because he considers the English “the only people” putting “limits” to the powers of the king. Voltaire traces some parallels with the Roman system, yet, the latter ended up in “slavery” , while the British system in “liberty”. The House of the Lords and the Commons divide the legislative power with the King.
On trade and commerce, Voltaire praises the “English superiority over the seas”: “trade enriched the citizens in England so it contributed to their freedom”.
One letter approached the “inoculation” topic; it seems, at that time, the English were deemed to be “fool” , because “they give to children” , early on, the small pox to “prevent them catching it”. The English called the Europeans “unnatural and coward”.
Maybe the best topics concern Philosophy (Science too) especially when Voltaire makes the difference between French Descartes and the British Newton. Where one sees “”impulsion” to explain motion, the other (Newton) sees “attraction” . These are “contradictory men”. Voltaire would develop at length the major contributions of Newton in the fields of “the laws of gravitation, optics and the ‘infinities of geometry”. But his fellowman Descartes is always a counter point to this peaceful-existence character called Newton. Descartes had been accused of “atheism”; left France, and for some time lived in Sweden; upon returning to France had to pay his “fees”.
Other “famous personages” are commented upon, namely “the acute logician” Locke, and Lord Bacon, the father of “the experimental Philosophy”.
The remaining letters approach comedy and tragedy, Voltaire’s translation work, and his critical views on Shakespeare (“natural and sublime” but “not a single spark of good taste”). Other “men of Letters” are mentioned with special attention to Pope: “one of the most amiable English poets”. Money for determining the “longitude” …and the Royal Society are the concluding topics.
Dear Sir, Voltaire,
More than 200 years on I would like to tell you: freedom still reigns in the UK. Since your 18th century, much has happened in those fields you approached in your letters.
In 21st century Britain, The Queen is still sovereign; the government and the parliament are elected bodies. You would be delighted to know about 19th century themes such as “species evolution” by Charles Darwin, or the Industrial Revolution. Or, the expansion of the British Empire to the point of the “sun never being set”, in its various longitudes.
Yet, The Empire is gone. The “little” island which you’ve visited still stands, though some political changes have occurred. The Irish got their independence as a nation. The Scotts had a few months ago a referendum on independence. Not yet gained, so the results said.
You would be surprised to know about the number of mosques in England; yet you would get terrified on the number in France. Here, in England, there are people from all over the world.
The capital city is still “busy as usual”. Can you imagine a few days ago I got to know that in 10 years’ time the one percent richest doubled their wealth?.. and 80 billionaires, it happens, do live in the little place “of corruption and depravity” you were in?
Well, May coming, there will be elections; freedom to vote. It’s likely the conservatives will stay in power. Yes, the Tories. You wrote about them… and about the “Whigs”.
Recently one “Labour man” acknowledged/suggested “the Dome” (it wasn’t there in the 18th century!!!) was superfluous spending.
I end my letter with a letter from the book of Robert Blatchford (“Merrie England”):
“Dear Mr Smith, I am sorry to hear that you look upon socialism as…senseless thing and upon socialists as wicked or foolish men”.
Au revoir, monsieur François-Marie Arouet.
I'll keep you posted.
April 25th, 2015.
----------------
Dear Sir, Voltaire
Hope you're in good health. [Yeah, National Health was a big topic of the campaign!]
Just to inform you the conservatives have won the election; maybe, most important, the Scottish party had a great increase in seats gained (from 6 to 58).
As I was writing down this piece it was said that only "10 seats" are missing for a conservative majority.
Things haven't changed that much, right?
Maybe not.
Regards,
May 8th, 2015
-------------
Dear Sir, Voltaire
I know you like images with portent; I've seen in it "winds of change"; I'm sure you'll be able to decipher the symbol. The guy on the picture just won the Labour leadership, past this week.
Say something,... if you want.
Meanwhile, I promise, I'm your postman.
All the best,
September 19th, 2015
-----
Dear Sir,
-ça-va?
Hope you're fine. Just to inform you the UK runs the risk of pulling OUT of the European Union. You cannot imagine how it has been: thousands of refugees from Africa and Asia and the Middle East flooding in this our continent, and how much disunion it has surfaced between Europe's nations on this matter. The euro mess persists. Some other time, I promise, will tell you about the Syria question. Truly messy.
Hope you'll reply soon; meanwhile, you know me, I'll keep you posted.
Cheers!
October the 17th 2015
---
Sir, take a look at this:
Sir, a majority has voted for attacks on ISIL (397 versus 223 votes). ISIL is a so-called State inside present day Iraq and Syria, with aspirations for a world caliphate, allow me to update you.
It just happened, a galvanizing speech by Labour shadow foreign secretary Mr B. He said his party leader (the one above, in the picture, near the socialist symbol) was not a “terrorist sympathizer” but a “decent man”; yet, this time around Mr. B will support a military action in Syria (contrary to his party leader view); he sees it as a similar situation to the time when the parliament stood up ”against Hitler and Mussolini”. It has now a UN resolution supporting it.
But this same day I got to know the view of a French journalist who had been for months kept captive by ISIL; and you know what he said: just don’t bomb it (ISIL): it’s a trap.
So, you figure…
All the best
3rd December 2015
---
Sir, just to wish you Happy New Year!
Terrible floods, it's been.
I'll be back; I want to tell you something interesting about Manchester. You'll have a perspective on what's to be in year 2016.
Cheers!
4th January 2016
PS Sir, I wanted to ask about your aesthetic preferences; so, which one of these paintings do you prefer?
As soon as you've made up your mind and choice, just let me know; I will certainly reply; immediately. Right, they're both related to Manchester city.
---
Sir,
I am still waiting for your art (sort of) judgment, ...but have you heard about that discussion in the UK parliament (yeah, the Commons) about that American candidate for the presidency called Trump (of Scottish breed, on the mother side); the list of adjectives is so funny: "idiot", “narcissist” , “buffoon"..., and “a wazzock".
Just tell me what you make of this,... and of freedom of speech.
All the best.
19th January 2016
---
Sir,
a quick note, typical of my times: check on the Boris effect,... and the Brexit; I'll be back.
Cheers!
23rd February 2016
Sir,
A referendum on the Britain's membership in the EU,will be held on 23rd of June, this year. I'll keep you posted, meanwhile. Chances are...
27th February 2016
---
Dear Sir,
Check on this interactive stuff:
"What a difference 400 years makes: the London skyline 1616 v 2016 – interactive"
in: http://www.theguardian.com/cities/201...
à tout à l’heure!
3rd of March 2016
----
Sir, ...on the "Boris effect",
He's been saying interesting things regarding this "thing" called EU. The "thing" (my expression) is taking away money from the nations, and control...;it's an "anti-democratic" thing, Boris contends; so, he's pro "vote Leave",....that thing.
The visit of the US president to the UK won't change his mind. Mind you, the president is a "stay-in -EU" man. But Boris has found a "paradox" recently and wrote about it: “There is no country in the world that defends its own sovereignty with such hysterical vigilance as the United States of America", so why should the US meddle with the UK right to decide, its own liberty??.
No wonder some are telling the visiting president: "butt out".
What do youthing think, Sir, about the thinkthing?
Regards.
PS; I am adding a picture of London in the near future; maybe toougly terrifying?or?...,You tell me.
22nd April 2016
---
Sir,take a look at this quote:
"a reptile ... just fit now, after being twice discarded by the people, to become a Conservative. He possesses all the necessary requisites of perfidy, selfishness, depravity, want of principle, etc., which would qualify him for the change. His name shows that he is of Jewish origin". Yes, April 1835, it was Irish MP Daniel O'Connell who wrote it , about D'Israeli, one who would become UK's prime minister.
Anti-semitism is not a new thing. It seems these past days the issue has surfaced almost uncontrollably inside the Labour. Corbyn, the leader, has been trying hard to suppress the old problem (and racism too); some heads are rolling already. But this photo tells something, though:
(Corbyn, at a pro-Palestinian rally in London, 2014; he once said that Hezbollah and Hamas are his "friends")
Sir, tell me about,... if you may.
All the best.
3rd of May 2016
---
Sir,
You surely recall I told you about Mosques in the UK, ...and in France. Well, just to inform you: London has just elected a Muslim mayor. As I read in the LBR*, it's "symbolic", though it won't last long, thus wrote Fatema Ahmed. She wrote : "The symbolism of Khan’s win will soon fade, and politics as usual will resume.". But, no one doubts, it's a major change. The discordant voices can be heard: "London is in trouble", says Graham Moore, of the English Democrats party, accusing the elected mayor of having "stood with extremists".
Whatever..., Sadiq Khan promised to be the Mayor of all Londoners. We shall see what to make of this man "of British-Pakistani origin". Truly, times have changed.
Cheers!
7th of May 2016
*London Review of Books
---
Sir, I forgot about this next photo, so I'm adding it now, for a better clarification of the "total picture"; you know.
Cheers again!
8th of May 2016
---
Sir,
todie,ugh,I mean, today, I read these amazing news about the white cockneys of London's East End, now a minority,being replaced in the past 15 years by migrants. Yeah,do you remember NEWHAM???
Just imagine the Drew primary where throughout its corridors one can hear 43 languages being spoken,...what a sort of Babel.
Hope you wont day, ugh,die,....it's a new world.
Wishes of perennial health,....
14th of May 2016
---
Sir,
You certainly recall the american presidential candidate Trump, I told you about; a "wazzock", some in the UK called him, trying to ban him from entering into the kingdom of her/his Magesty. At that time Trump was calling for a ban on muslims entering the USA. The UK's PM said it was "stupid,....devisive". And you know what,...Trump now says HE'S BEEN INVITED TO VISIT 10th DOWNING ST.
Can you believe it?!??
I can.
Kind regards,
22nd May 2016
---
Sir,
Again the EU-thing. Yesterday, I was informed that, they [EUthingers!!] , EU officials, more than 10,000 are paid above the UK PM salary [£142,000]. And the number of allowences?? you cannot imagine!!! Even free Viagra!! Some day I will explain you about the Viagra. No time now.
Have a good day!
25th May 2016
---
Sir,
Just to recall the 1994 referendum in Norway,on joining the EU. The "No" won, yet many acknowledge today that the "Yes" side used lots of lies in the campaign; like: jobs to be lost, no investment, interest rates going up, an isolated Norway, ...the EU not listening to "us". It just DIDN'T HAPPEN!! Norway today is better OFF. OFF the EU. As the 23rd of June draws nigh people shouldn't forget the past, even fear campaigns and all types of CONbos, say, like cheaper roaming charges.
Kindest regards
28th May 2016
---
Sir,
What a letter!!! I mean, not mine, but the one by Justice Secretary Mr Gove and Mr Boris Johnson, to Dave, the PM; accusing him of "lies" on immigration (this is really a hot, hot topic now, for all of Europe, not just the UK) and "basic lack of democratic consent", and a lot more on thatcreepy thing called EU. You should read it; I'll provide you with a "link", just in case you ask...
I'm so eager about this ref's...you cannot imagine.
Cheers!!
6th June 2016
---
Sir, when you see many threats that may mean “pressure” and “fear”, on the side of the established order, or putting it in other words: the EU Fat Cats fear a certain lifestyle to be gone.
See these examples. Today I’ve seen a poll suggesting the Danes are in majority pro, leaving the EU. Some days ago I had read that some Germans wanted Britain to stay, while others were threatening with a “no second chance” and “Calais protection” to disappear.
Today France was threatening to make Britain “pay” in the case of exit. And yesterday I watched a former PM of Britain speaking about the “economic aftershock” that will ensue, just in case the Leave wins.
So much fear. So many threats. It’s the contagion effect they fear, also. One nation leaving may lead to others leaving too.
One great enthusiast of the Leave campaign put it this way the (BR)exit scenario: ….[it] would spark an exodus by "many other countries", bringing an end to "the entire European project".
I’ll keep you posted, Sir.
9th June 2016
---
Sir,
Though not a British citizen, I'm proud of that flag...,
just to tell you on the EU Referendum: the Leave won!
Can you believe it? I can, though many (especially the pollsters---someday will explain it to you) still had it for granted: to stay in,...kind of , to stay put.
I'll be back on the issue; it seems by now a 51,9 % win isn't bad; other European nations have been keen on listening/reading about the results.
BRAVE NEWWORLD Europe ENGLAND!
Haha!!
As I read today: "See EU later!"
24th June 2016
Sir,
I know about "Anti-'Brexit' protest hits London"; and about "Londindependence" and petitions,....and stuff alike.
But the Leave won; just like that.
Long lives the Brexit!
Cheers!
28th June 2016
Sir,
Italians are using Britain's flag to protest EU ruling. Nice summer in their beaches. Hope you're having a good one too. I hope you read Italian:"La Brexit in versione ligure...". Seeya.
4th August 2016
These are a collection of letters regarding England in its many facets (religious, political, scientific and cultural). A 18th century Britain, Voltaire had been in for some time (1726-1729).
At least seven of the letters are dedicated to the religious issues. They touch on the diversity witnessed by the French philosopher. He would call it “a nation of sectarists”.
The very first letters are a sort of analysis of the (and meeting with) proponents of a, then, powerful movement/sect called the Quakers. They were persecuted under Charles II and they managed to convert some of the soldiers of Cromwell, who quit service and refused to take oaths.
Their belief was as radical and basic as this: it had been 1600 years of corruption, of the true teachings of Christ; one who never baptized, but was baptized by John. Quakers followed Christ, not John.
Voltaire met with one young Quaker man called George Fox: he would never “swear”.
And yet, Voltaire highlighted their overseas impact. I am referring William Penn (most "hated by the protestants") , who inherited “very large possessions (south of Maryland)” and established Quakers power in America; in Pennsylvania, namely . Voltaire says at that time “Philadelphia city was flourishing”.
Some other letters are an approach to other sects (the Unitarians, the Socinians, the Arians, the Antitrinitarians…), yet, outstanding: The Church of England, whose “true religion is the sect of Episcopalians”.
Differing from France’s “training”, all the clergy is educated (with “few exceptions”) in Oxford and Cambridge. Voltaire still mentions the Presbyterians, somehow similar to Calvinism, the established religion of Scotland.
The topic then moves into politics ---government, parliament and the monarchy---, having said, nevertheless, that the capital (London) was a place of “corruption and depravity”.
His political analysis is positive and with some taint of praise, because he considers the English “the only people” putting “limits” to the powers of the king. Voltaire traces some parallels with the Roman system, yet, the latter ended up in “slavery” , while the British system in “liberty”. The House of the Lords and the Commons divide the legislative power with the King.
On trade and commerce, Voltaire praises the “English superiority over the seas”: “trade enriched the citizens in England so it contributed to their freedom”.
One letter approached the “inoculation” topic; it seems, at that time, the English were deemed to be “fool” , because “they give to children” , early on, the small pox to “prevent them catching it”. The English called the Europeans “unnatural and coward”.
Maybe the best topics concern Philosophy (Science too) especially when Voltaire makes the difference between French Descartes and the British Newton. Where one sees “”impulsion” to explain motion, the other (Newton) sees “attraction” . These are “contradictory men”. Voltaire would develop at length the major contributions of Newton in the fields of “the laws of gravitation, optics and the ‘infinities of geometry”. But his fellowman Descartes is always a counter point to this peaceful-existence character called Newton. Descartes had been accused of “atheism”; left France, and for some time lived in Sweden; upon returning to France had to pay his “fees”.
Other “famous personages” are commented upon, namely “the acute logician” Locke, and Lord Bacon, the father of “the experimental Philosophy”.
The remaining letters approach comedy and tragedy, Voltaire’s translation work, and his critical views on Shakespeare (“natural and sublime” but “not a single spark of good taste”). Other “men of Letters” are mentioned with special attention to Pope: “one of the most amiable English poets”. Money for determining the “longitude” …and the Royal Society are the concluding topics.
Dear Sir, Voltaire,
More than 200 years on I would like to tell you: freedom still reigns in the UK. Since your 18th century, much has happened in those fields you approached in your letters.
In 21st century Britain, The Queen is still sovereign; the government and the parliament are elected bodies. You would be delighted to know about 19th century themes such as “species evolution” by Charles Darwin, or the Industrial Revolution. Or, the expansion of the British Empire to the point of the “sun never being set”, in its various longitudes.
Yet, The Empire is gone. The “little” island which you’ve visited still stands, though some political changes have occurred. The Irish got their independence as a nation. The Scotts had a few months ago a referendum on independence. Not yet gained, so the results said.
You would be surprised to know about the number of mosques in England; yet you would get terrified on the number in France. Here, in England, there are people from all over the world.
The capital city is still “busy as usual”. Can you imagine a few days ago I got to know that in 10 years’ time the one percent richest doubled their wealth?.. and 80 billionaires, it happens, do live in the little place “of corruption and depravity” you were in?
Well, May coming, there will be elections; freedom to vote. It’s likely the conservatives will stay in power. Yes, the Tories. You wrote about them… and about the “Whigs”.
Recently one “Labour man” acknowledged/suggested “the Dome” (it wasn’t there in the 18th century!!!) was superfluous spending.
I end my letter with a letter from the book of Robert Blatchford (“Merrie England”):
“Dear Mr Smith, I am sorry to hear that you look upon socialism as…senseless thing and upon socialists as wicked or foolish men”.
Au revoir, monsieur François-Marie Arouet.
I'll keep you posted.
April 25th, 2015.
----------------
Dear Sir, Voltaire
Hope you're in good health. [Yeah, National Health was a big topic of the campaign!]
Just to inform you the conservatives have won the election; maybe, most important, the Scottish party had a great increase in seats gained (from 6 to 58).
As I was writing down this piece it was said that only "10 seats" are missing for a conservative majority.
Things haven't changed that much, right?
Maybe not.
Regards,
May 8th, 2015
-------------
Dear Sir, Voltaire
I know you like images with portent; I've seen in it "winds of change"; I'm sure you'll be able to decipher the symbol. The guy on the picture just won the Labour leadership, past this week.
Say something,... if you want.
Meanwhile, I promise, I'm your postman.
All the best,
September 19th, 2015
-----
Dear Sir,
-ça-va?
Hope you're fine. Just to inform you the UK runs the risk of pulling OUT of the European Union. You cannot imagine how it has been: thousands of refugees from Africa and Asia and the Middle East flooding in this our continent, and how much disunion it has surfaced between Europe's nations on this matter. The euro mess persists. Some other time, I promise, will tell you about the Syria question. Truly messy.
Hope you'll reply soon; meanwhile, you know me, I'll keep you posted.
Cheers!
October the 17th 2015
---
Sir, take a look at this:
Sir, a majority has voted for attacks on ISIL (397 versus 223 votes). ISIL is a so-called State inside present day Iraq and Syria, with aspirations for a world caliphate, allow me to update you.
It just happened, a galvanizing speech by Labour shadow foreign secretary Mr B. He said his party leader (the one above, in the picture, near the socialist symbol) was not a “terrorist sympathizer” but a “decent man”; yet, this time around Mr. B will support a military action in Syria (contrary to his party leader view); he sees it as a similar situation to the time when the parliament stood up ”against Hitler and Mussolini”. It has now a UN resolution supporting it.
But this same day I got to know the view of a French journalist who had been for months kept captive by ISIL; and you know what he said: just don’t bomb it (ISIL): it’s a trap.
So, you figure…
All the best
3rd December 2015
---
Sir, just to wish you Happy New Year!
Terrible floods, it's been.
I'll be back; I want to tell you something interesting about Manchester. You'll have a perspective on what's to be in year 2016.
Cheers!
4th January 2016
PS Sir, I wanted to ask about your aesthetic preferences; so, which one of these paintings do you prefer?
As soon as you've made up your mind and choice, just let me know; I will certainly reply; immediately. Right, they're both related to Manchester city.
---
Sir,
I am still waiting for your art (sort of) judgment, ...but have you heard about that discussion in the UK parliament (yeah, the Commons) about that American candidate for the presidency called Trump (of Scottish breed, on the mother side); the list of adjectives is so funny: "idiot", “narcissist” , “buffoon"..., and “a wazzock".
Just tell me what you make of this,... and of freedom of speech.
All the best.
19th January 2016
---
Sir,
a quick note, typical of my times: check on the Boris effect,... and the Brexit; I'll be back.
Cheers!
23rd February 2016
Sir,
A referendum on the Britain's membership in the EU,will be held on 23rd of June, this year. I'll keep you posted, meanwhile. Chances are...
27th February 2016
---
Dear Sir,
Check on this interactive stuff:
"What a difference 400 years makes: the London skyline 1616 v 2016 – interactive"
in: http://www.theguardian.com/cities/201...
à tout à l’heure!
3rd of March 2016
----
Sir, ...on the "Boris effect",
He's been saying interesting things regarding this "thing" called EU. The "thing" (my expression) is taking away money from the nations, and control...;it's an "anti-democratic" thing, Boris contends; so, he's pro "vote Leave",....that thing.
The visit of the US president to the UK won't change his mind. Mind you, the president is a "stay-in -EU" man. But Boris has found a "paradox" recently and wrote about it: “There is no country in the world that defends its own sovereignty with such hysterical vigilance as the United States of America", so why should the US meddle with the UK right to decide, its own liberty??.
No wonder some are telling the visiting president: "butt out".
What do you
Regards.
PS; I am adding a picture of London in the near future; maybe too
22nd April 2016
---
Sir,take a look at this quote:
"a reptile ... just fit now, after being twice discarded by the people, to become a Conservative. He possesses all the necessary requisites of perfidy, selfishness, depravity, want of principle, etc., which would qualify him for the change. His name shows that he is of Jewish origin". Yes, April 1835, it was Irish MP Daniel O'Connell who wrote it , about D'Israeli, one who would become UK's prime minister.
Anti-semitism is not a new thing. It seems these past days the issue has surfaced almost uncontrollably inside the Labour. Corbyn, the leader, has been trying hard to suppress the old problem (and racism too); some heads are rolling already. But this photo tells something, though:
(Corbyn, at a pro-Palestinian rally in London, 2014; he once said that Hezbollah and Hamas are his "friends")
Sir, tell me about,... if you may.
All the best.
3rd of May 2016
---
Sir,
You surely recall I told you about Mosques in the UK, ...and in France. Well, just to inform you: London has just elected a Muslim mayor. As I read in the LBR*, it's "symbolic", though it won't last long, thus wrote Fatema Ahmed. She wrote : "The symbolism of Khan’s win will soon fade, and politics as usual will resume.". But, no one doubts, it's a major change. The discordant voices can be heard: "London is in trouble", says Graham Moore, of the English Democrats party, accusing the elected mayor of having "stood with extremists".
Whatever..., Sadiq Khan promised to be the Mayor of all Londoners. We shall see what to make of this man "of British-Pakistani origin". Truly, times have changed.
Cheers!
7th of May 2016
*London Review of Books
---
Sir, I forgot about this next photo, so I'm adding it now, for a better clarification of the "total picture"; you know.
Cheers again!
8th of May 2016
---
Sir,
todie,ugh,I mean, today, I read these amazing news about the white cockneys of London's East End, now a minority,being replaced in the past 15 years by migrants. Yeah,do you remember NEWHAM???
Just imagine the Drew primary where throughout its corridors one can hear 43 languages being spoken,...what a sort of Babel.
Hope you wont day, ugh,die,....it's a new world.
Wishes of perennial health,....
14th of May 2016
---
Sir,
You certainly recall the american presidential candidate Trump, I told you about; a "wazzock", some in the UK called him, trying to ban him from entering into the kingdom of her/his Magesty. At that time Trump was calling for a ban on muslims entering the USA. The UK's PM said it was "stupid,....devisive". And you know what,...Trump now says HE'S BEEN INVITED TO VISIT 10th DOWNING ST.
Can you believe it?!??
I can.
Kind regards,
22nd May 2016
---
Sir,
Again the EU-thing. Yesterday, I was informed that, they [EUthingers!!] , EU officials, more than 10,000 are paid above the UK PM salary [£142,000]. And the number of allowences?? you cannot imagine!!! Even free Viagra!! Some day I will explain you about the Viagra. No time now.
Have a good day!
25th May 2016
---
Sir,
Just to recall the 1994 referendum in Norway,on joining the EU. The "No" won, yet many acknowledge today that the "Yes" side used lots of lies in the campaign; like: jobs to be lost, no investment, interest rates going up, an isolated Norway, ...the EU not listening to "us". It just DIDN'T HAPPEN!! Norway today is better OFF. OFF the EU. As the 23rd of June draws nigh people shouldn't forget the past, even fear campaigns and all types of CONbos, say, like cheaper roaming charges.
Kindest regards
28th May 2016
---
Sir,
What a letter!!! I mean, not mine, but the one by Justice Secretary Mr Gove and Mr Boris Johnson, to Dave, the PM; accusing him of "lies" on immigration (this is really a hot, hot topic now, for all of Europe, not just the UK) and "basic lack of democratic consent", and a lot more on that
I'm so eager about this ref's...you cannot imagine.
Cheers!!
6th June 2016
---
Sir, when you see many threats that may mean “pressure” and “fear”, on the side of the established order, or putting it in other words: the EU Fat Cats fear a certain lifestyle to be gone.
See these examples. Today I’ve seen a poll suggesting the Danes are in majority pro, leaving the EU. Some days ago I had read that some Germans wanted Britain to stay, while others were threatening with a “no second chance” and “Calais protection” to disappear.
Today France was threatening to make Britain “pay” in the case of exit. And yesterday I watched a former PM of Britain speaking about the “economic aftershock” that will ensue, just in case the Leave wins.
So much fear. So many threats. It’s the contagion effect they fear, also. One nation leaving may lead to others leaving too.
One great enthusiast of the Leave campaign put it this way the (BR)exit scenario: ….[it] would spark an exodus by "many other countries", bringing an end to "the entire European project".
I’ll keep you posted, Sir.
9th June 2016
---
Sir,
Though not a British citizen, I'm proud of that flag...,
just to tell you on the EU Referendum: the Leave won!
Can you believe it? I can, though many (especially the pollsters---someday will explain it to you) still had it for granted: to stay in,...kind of , to stay put.
I'll be back on the issue; it seems by now a 51,9 % win isn't bad; other European nations have been keen on listening/reading about the results.
BRAVE NEW
Haha!!
As I read today: "See EU later!"
24th June 2016
Sir,
I know about "Anti-'Brexit' protest hits London"; and about "Londindependence" and petitions,....and stuff alike.
But the Leave won; just like that.
Long lives the Brexit!
Cheers!
28th June 2016
Sir,
Italians are using Britain's flag to protest EU ruling. Nice summer in their beaches. Hope you're having a good one too. I hope you read Italian:"La Brexit in versione ligure...". Seeya.
4th August 2016
May 9, 2018
Time, which alone gives reputation to writers, at last makes their very faults venerable.
Voltaire and Rousseau are usually grouped together as the twin pillars of the 18th century, the first championing reason and reform, the second romanticism and revolution. After reading them back to back, I know who I prefer. Rousseau is arguably a far more original thinker and writer; yet his personality is so irksome and his arguments so irrational that it can be unpleasant to read him. Voltaire, by contrast, is witty, charming, and delightful; and after Rousseau’s lyrical fantasies, Voltaire’s deflating sarcasm is extremely refreshing.
This book is a collection of essays on topics related to England, written after Voltaire’s three-year stay on the island nation. He interviews a Quaker, visits Parliament, goes to the theater, and then expounds the philosophy of Bacon, Locke, and Newton. He skips lightly from topic to topic, a barb here, a jest there, while revealing an impressive range of knowledge—from inoculation to history, from theater to physics. In general his opinion of England is quite positive, arguably idealized, seeing England as a land of toleration and philosophy. Indeed, the only thing that Voltaire shows some reservation towards is Shakespeare, whose dramas struck Voltaire’s Enlightenment taste as lacking refinement.
The book was controversial when published, since many in France saw Voltaire’s praise of England—correctly—as veiled criticism of their own country. Nowadays, this political purpose only adds to the essays’ charms, as we see Voltaire as a champion of an open society, from religion to science to literature, in addition to an omnivorous intellectual. Few books pack so much into so little space.
July 9, 2015
Introduction
Letters on England
--Letter 1: On the Quakers
--Letter 2: On the Quakers
--Letter 3: On the Quakers
--Letter 4: On the Quakers
--Letter 5: On the Anglican Religion
--Letter 6: On the Presbyterians
--Letter 7: On the Socinians, Arians or Anti-Trinitarians
--Letter 8: On Parliament
--Letter 9: On the Government
--Letter 10: On Commerce
--Letter 11: On Inoculation with Smallpox
--Letter 12: On Chancellor Bacon
--Letter 13: On Mr Locke
--Letter 14: On Descartes and Newton
--Letter 15: On the System of Gravitation
--Letter 16: On the Optics of Newton
--Letter 17: On Infinity and Chronology
--Letter 18: On Tragedy
--Letter 19: On Comedy
--Letter 20: On Noble Lords who cultivate literature
--Letter 21: On the Earl of Rochester and Mr Waller
--Letter 22: On Mr Pope and some other famous poets
--Letter 23: On the Consideration due to Men of Letters
--Letter 24: On Academies
--Letter 25: On the Pensées of Pascal
Notes
Appendix: Voltaire's Verse Translations
Chronology of Voltaire's Life and Times
Further Reading
Letters on England
--Letter 1: On the Quakers
--Letter 2: On the Quakers
--Letter 3: On the Quakers
--Letter 4: On the Quakers
--Letter 5: On the Anglican Religion
--Letter 6: On the Presbyterians
--Letter 7: On the Socinians, Arians or Anti-Trinitarians
--Letter 8: On Parliament
--Letter 9: On the Government
--Letter 10: On Commerce
--Letter 11: On Inoculation with Smallpox
--Letter 12: On Chancellor Bacon
--Letter 13: On Mr Locke
--Letter 14: On Descartes and Newton
--Letter 15: On the System of Gravitation
--Letter 16: On the Optics of Newton
--Letter 17: On Infinity and Chronology
--Letter 18: On Tragedy
--Letter 19: On Comedy
--Letter 20: On Noble Lords who cultivate literature
--Letter 21: On the Earl of Rochester and Mr Waller
--Letter 22: On Mr Pope and some other famous poets
--Letter 23: On the Consideration due to Men of Letters
--Letter 24: On Academies
--Letter 25: On the Pensées of Pascal
Notes
Appendix: Voltaire's Verse Translations
Chronology of Voltaire's Life and Times
Further Reading
December 22, 2017
فولتير إنسان جميل. جميل بأفكاره وبسخريته اللاذعة. أحببته فوراً عندما قرأت له رواية كانديد قبل سنوات (قرأتها مرتين بالمناسبة!!) .. والآن أعجبتُ به عندما أتممت رسائله الفلسفية.
هذه الرسائل تستحق القراءة. بالتأكيد سيختلف القارىء ويتفق مع فولتير في عدة قضايا. ولكن أليس هذا هو الهدف من القراءة على أية حال؟
فولتير إنسان جميل. جميل بأفكاره وبسخريته اللاذعة. أحببته فوراً عندما قرأت له رواية كانديد قبل سنوات (قرأتها مرتين بالمناسبة!!) .. والآن أعجبتُ به عندما أتممت رسائله الفلسفية.
هذه الرسائل تستحق القراءة. بالتأكيد سيختلف القارىء ويتفق مع فولتير في عدة قضايا. ولكن أليس هذا هو الهدف من القراءة على أية حال؟
Want to read
May 4, 2017
Since I ran out of space in my review of this book ["Letters on England"], I take the chance of this French edition’s space to continue my correspondence with my “friend” of old: Voltaire.
There are pending issues to talk about. Anyone trying to have a glimpse of the ongoing correspondence and the review of the book should look up here: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7...
Now, the pressing matters.
Sir Voltaire,
I’ve been worried about this kind of postponing of the Brexit “for-real” ; the referendum is gone, been months now. So, when do you think it will happen? Boris should say something.
See you soon!
29th September 2016
--
Sir,
I know Boris has (partly) answered my request; he spoke, a few days ago, about the issue saying: "Brexit will be titanic success". Well, nasty voices are talking about the "titanic....SANK". You surely know why; just look at the next photo. You probably know what it will imply.
And then again my question: when a Brexit-for-real?
Cheers!
6th November 2016
Sir,
It just happened: BREXIT IN USA.
You know what I mean.
See you soon!
9th November 2016
Sir,
Again, turtle-pace Brexit, I could say; yet moving. Now, after the parliament vote [461 ayes; 89 noes] the UK will trigger article 50 by 31st March 2017. Free-at-last, thereafter? Hope so.
By the way, I've found the next picture very curious; I know you care about London.
(Janie is an american...)
Cheers!
8th December 2016
--
Sir,
Again the EU thing; they want €100 billion, upfront, from the UK. They really suck...money.
Next June the 8th, elections will take place; I hope for a real Brexit answer: farewell suckers!
I'll be back, Sir
4th May 2017
November 26, 2019
#الرسائل_الفلسفية
#فولتير
عدد الصفحات : 128
الكتاب الثامن والتسعون لعام 2019
يتكون الكتاب من خمسة وعشرون رسالةً فلسفية تحدث فيهن فولتير عن عددٍ كبيرٍ من القضايا الدينية المسيحية كالكويكرز أو ما يسمون بالصاحبيون وهم فئة من المسيحيين البروتستانت ظهروا أول مرةٍ في القرن السابع عشر ميلادية. والديانة الأنغليكانية أو التقليد الإنغليكاني وتاريخه وأهم منتسبيه. والبرسبيتاري السائد في إسكتولندا، والعديد العديد من الطوائف المسيحية في دعوة منه للوئام مرةً وأخرى للإستنكار من هذه المذاهب الدينية ومناهجها. لينتقل بالحديث عن الحكومة والبرلمان أو مجلس اللوردات ومهامه، في لمحةٍ تاريخية عن الوضع السياسي الإنجليزي والتجاري وحتى الصحي. وأسماء ونبذات معلوماتية عن بعض الشخصيات المشهورة في زمنه، كشكسبير ونيوتن وديكارت. وأهم قضاياهم ومؤلفاتهم وبحوثهم.
وعلى الرغم من أن الكتاب يتحدث عن الفلسفة إلا أني لم أقرأ عمقًا فلسفيًا في أيٍّ من الرسائل وهذا عائدٌ إلى رداءة الترجمة ولغتها البسيطة، فجاءت الرسائل أقرب للمقالات العادية الرتيبة فجاهدت كثيرًا في قراءتها وإتمامها دون نيل حظوة فلسفة فولتير وشاعريته المعروفة، واكتفيت بما جاء فيه من معلومات دينية وعلمية وأدبية فقط.
#إيمان_بني_صخر
#فولتير
عدد الصفحات : 128
الكتاب الثامن والتسعون لعام 2019
يتكون الكتاب من خمسة وعشرون رسالةً فلسفية تحدث فيهن فولتير عن عددٍ كبيرٍ من القضايا الدينية المسيحية كالكويكرز أو ما يسمون بالصاحبيون وهم فئة من المسيحيين البروتستانت ظهروا أول مرةٍ في القرن السابع عشر ميلادية. والديانة الأنغليكانية أو التقليد الإنغليكاني وتاريخه وأهم منتسبيه. والبرسبيتاري السائد في إسكتولندا، والعديد العديد من الطوائف المسيحية في دعوة منه للوئام مرةً وأخرى للإستنكار من هذه المذاهب الدينية ومناهجها. لينتقل بالحديث عن الحكومة والبرلمان أو مجلس اللوردات ومهامه، في لمحةٍ تاريخية عن الوضع السياسي الإنجليزي والتجاري وحتى الصحي. وأسماء ونبذات معلوماتية عن بعض الشخصيات المشهورة في زمنه، كشكسبير ونيوتن وديكارت. وأهم قضاياهم ومؤلفاتهم وبحوثهم.
وعلى الرغم من أن الكتاب يتحدث عن الفلسفة إلا أني لم أقرأ عمقًا فلسفيًا في أيٍّ من الرسائل وهذا عائدٌ إلى رداءة الترجمة ولغتها البسيطة، فجاءت الرسائل أقرب للمقالات العادية الرتيبة فجاهدت كثيرًا في قراءتها وإتمامها دون نيل حظوة فلسفة فولتير وشاعريته المعروفة، واكتفيت بما جاء فيه من معلومات دينية وعلمية وأدبية فقط.
#إيمان_بني_صخر
February 8, 2023
رسائل فولتير لنقد وتوجيه النظام السياسي والديني في مرحلة ما قبل الثورة الفرنسية، لا أعرف مالذي جعل من هذا الكتاب مميزًا إلى أن ينال كل هذا الصيت ! ولكن ربما في ذاك الزمان كان له تأثيرًا قوياً لم أجد له في نفسي أثر.
ماذا بعد القراءة ؟
وقد تولد الأفكار أيضاً من انتهاكات الروح واستهلاكها
#أبجدية_فرح 3/5
#رسائل_فولتير # عصير_الكتب
#candleflame23bookreviews
ماذا بعد القراءة ؟
وقد تولد الأفكار أيضاً من انتهاكات الروح واستهلاكها
#أبجدية_فرح 3/5
#رسائل_فولتير # عصير_الكتب
#candleflame23bookreviews
April 2, 2018
Voltaire’s Letters on England is hardly as exhaustive as Alexis de Tocqueville or as ordinary as Montaigne. In fact not, and thankfully not as exhausting to read. Voltaire has written a few letters to France, if for no other reason to remind them that he is a free man in England and might not be one in France. I am speaking to the free Kindle edition which seems to have copied over with no obvious mistakes in the transfer process. The quality of the translation is for another to judge, that this was easy to read is the limits of my expertise.
The Letters range from matters of religion as Voltaire records England as a land of many religious sects. His conclusions is that the presence of so many promotes religious tolerance while too few encourages strife as they struggle for ascendancy and one results in the total loss of freedom. Not a bad case for the separation of church and state.
He spends a fair amount of time extolling Sir Isaac Newton almost all too highly complementary but with a little left over to admit the man was less than perfect even in things scientific. In the same way it was fun to read him disparage Shakespeare. I am a fan of the Bard, but Voltaire’s comment:
“Shakespeare boasted a strong fruitful genius. He was natural and sublime, but had not so much as a single spark of good taste, or knew one rule of the drama.” Was so unexpected as to cause me to laugh and read it to my wife. Voltaire would have a complex relationship with the plays of the man from Stratford, but that goes beyond this text.
Mostly Voltaire reports on Englishmen he respects, Sir Francis Bacon, Sir Edward Halley and so forth but it is description of the plays by Molière, and the now lessor known English playwrights: Mr. Wycherley and Mr. Congreve, that have me thinking it is time to read more and earlier plays.
Overall Voltaire tone is factual if opinion driven. There are flashes of wit, but these tend to be quiet and lurk like (remember I am writing on the Saturday before) Easter Eggs.
The Letters range from matters of religion as Voltaire records England as a land of many religious sects. His conclusions is that the presence of so many promotes religious tolerance while too few encourages strife as they struggle for ascendancy and one results in the total loss of freedom. Not a bad case for the separation of church and state.
He spends a fair amount of time extolling Sir Isaac Newton almost all too highly complementary but with a little left over to admit the man was less than perfect even in things scientific. In the same way it was fun to read him disparage Shakespeare. I am a fan of the Bard, but Voltaire’s comment:
“Shakespeare boasted a strong fruitful genius. He was natural and sublime, but had not so much as a single spark of good taste, or knew one rule of the drama.” Was so unexpected as to cause me to laugh and read it to my wife. Voltaire would have a complex relationship with the plays of the man from Stratford, but that goes beyond this text.
Mostly Voltaire reports on Englishmen he respects, Sir Francis Bacon, Sir Edward Halley and so forth but it is description of the plays by Molière, and the now lessor known English playwrights: Mr. Wycherley and Mr. Congreve, that have me thinking it is time to read more and earlier plays.
Overall Voltaire tone is factual if opinion driven. There are flashes of wit, but these tend to be quiet and lurk like (remember I am writing on the Saturday before) Easter Eggs.
November 27, 2016
ڤولتير فيلسوف عظيم ، أسلوبه المميز في النقد الساخر يجعل الكتاب ممتعًا إلى حد غريب.
يحتوي الكتاب على 25 رسالة فلسفية تشمل عدة مواضيع ومقارنات بين الشعبين الفرنسي والإنجليزي. وتتضمن الرسائل أراء ڤولتير في فلاسفة ومعلمين كنيوتن وديكارت ولوك وغيرهم. وخصص ڤولتير أطول رسالة لنقد أفكار باسكال وكانت هي خاتمة هذا الكتاب.
أما عن الترجمة فقد قرأت ترجمة عادل زعيتر وهي ترجمة للمعاني أكثر منها للكلمات و تقييمي لها 4/5.
يحتوي الكتاب على 25 رسالة فلسفية تشمل عدة مواضيع ومقارنات بين الشعبين الفرنسي والإنجليزي. وتتضمن الرسائل أراء ڤولتير في فلاسفة ومعلمين كنيوتن وديكارت ولوك وغيرهم. وخصص ڤولتير أطول رسالة لنقد أفكار باسكال وكانت هي خاتمة هذا الكتاب.
أما عن الترجمة فقد قرأت ترجمة عادل زعيتر وهي ترجمة للمعاني أكثر منها للكلمات و تقييمي لها 4/5.
February 8, 2018
كتاب ممل لم استطع انهاؤه .. العنوان غير مناسب للمحتوي والاسم الاول كان مناسب بشكل أكبر وهو رسائل إنجليزية فالكتاب تصفه يتحدث عن انجلترا التي كتبها فيها فولتير هذا الكتاب ويقارن بينها وبين بلده فرنسا التي هرب منها وكان ناقم عليها فكانت المقارنة بالضرورة في صالح الانجليز أعتقد أن تغيير اسم الكتاب كان هدفه اضفاء عمق غير موجود
May 26, 2021
A very nice collection of short bits about what Voltaire admires with the English. Contains his early thoughts on the world.
Read
April 5, 2022للاسف مقدرتش اكمله ف مش هديله تقييم
لانه ممل جدا وكأنه كتاب مدرسي ف التاريخ
وانا مش من محبي التاريخ اوي، للاسف كانت توقعاتي كبيرة اكمله بس معلش بقى 😅😂
لانه ممل جدا وكأنه كتاب مدرسي ف التاريخ
وانا مش من محبي التاريخ اوي، للاسف كانت توقعاتي كبيرة اكمله بس معلش بقى 😅😂
June 7, 2016
ولتر در این نامه ها به نقد وضع فرانسه با نظر به حال و هوای انگلستان می پردازد. البته این بدان معنا نیست که این نامه ها صرفا منحصر به مقایسه ی فرانسه و انگلستان هستند - مثال بارز نامه ی طولانی آخر است که در آن ولتر فقراتی از "اندیشه ها"ی پاسکال را نقل و به آنها حمله می کند. همچنین نباید پنداشت که ولتر به نقد انگلستان نمی پردازد - چنانکه در مورد حزب گرایی شدید آن دیار و همچنین یکی بودن فرهنگستان علم و ادب در آنجا از انتقاد احتراز نمی کند.
او در مورد سیاست - به طور خاص بردباری و مدارا و همچنین تقسیم قدرت و حضور مردم - ، در مورد علم - خصوصا نیوتن - و در مورد فلسفه - بیش از همه لاک - به تحسین انگلیس می پردازد. در مورد ادبیات و تاریخ نویسی اوضاع متفاوت است؛ مثلا او به شکسپیر حمله می کند و آثار او را فاقد لطافت آن چنانی می داند - مثال او برای زمختی حضور جادوگران و اعمال منحرف جنسی و ... است - نه از حیث اخلاقی بلکه از حیث عامه پسند بودنشان. در مورد تاریخ نویسی نیز تا بدانچا پیش می رود که انگلیسی ها را فاقد توان تاریخ نویسی می شمارد و می گوید تاریخ آنها را ما فرانسوی ها باید بنویسیم!
از مضامین محوری ولتر در این اثر - که خود را به طور خاص در نامه ی مفصل آخر، یعنی نامه ی بیست و پنجم، نشان می دهد - ستایش کار و فعالیت است. از مضامین ادبی دیگری که در این اثر می توان یافت تأکید ولتر بر عدم صحت ترجمه ی تحت اللفظی است - چنانکه با مقایسه ی ترجمه های ولتر با ترجمه های وفادارتر که مترجم در پاورقی متذکر آنها شده است می توان تفاوت های فاحشی در جملات و کلمات را یافت. ولتر ظاهرا بسی بیش از تراژدی به کمدی دل بسته است؛ گویی دغدغه های تراژدی را نخ نما، تاریخ گذشته، و فخرفروشانه می داند؛ اما از آن سو بر ملی و محلی بودن طنزها و دشواری یا حتی عدم امکان ترجمه ی آنها تأکید دارد -زیرا به ظرایف احوال و عادات این یا آن قوم وابسته اند.
در پایان باید متذکر شد که سطع ترجمه متوسط به بالا است؛ هر جند در جاهایی مترجم نوعی جمله بندی یا معادل هایی را برگزیده که فهم را سخت می سازد. افزون بر این مترجم در تلاشی ستودنی انبوهی از پی نوشت ها را در پایان کتاب در مورد اسامی خاص و ... فراهم آورده است که حدود 80 صفحه از این کتاب را در بر گرفته اند. هر چند می توان اطناب را در این پی نوشت ها مشاهده کرد اما به هر حال نمی توان سپاسگزار این تلاش نبود.
او در مورد سیاست - به طور خاص بردباری و مدارا و همچنین تقسیم قدرت و حضور مردم - ، در مورد علم - خصوصا نیوتن - و در مورد فلسفه - بیش از همه لاک - به تحسین انگلیس می پردازد. در مورد ادبیات و تاریخ نویسی اوضاع متفاوت است؛ مثلا او به شکسپیر حمله می کند و آثار او را فاقد لطافت آن چنانی می داند - مثال او برای زمختی حضور جادوگران و اعمال منحرف جنسی و ... است - نه از حیث اخلاقی بلکه از حیث عامه پسند بودنشان. در مورد تاریخ نویسی نیز تا بدانچا پیش می رود که انگلیسی ها را فاقد توان تاریخ نویسی می شمارد و می گوید تاریخ آنها را ما فرانسوی ها باید بنویسیم!
از مضامین محوری ولتر در این اثر - که خود را به طور خاص در نامه ی مفصل آخر، یعنی نامه ی بیست و پنجم، نشان می دهد - ستایش کار و فعالیت است. از مضامین ادبی دیگری که در این اثر می توان یافت تأکید ولتر بر عدم صحت ترجمه ی تحت اللفظی است - چنانکه با مقایسه ی ترجمه های ولتر با ترجمه های وفادارتر که مترجم در پاورقی متذکر آنها شده است می توان تفاوت های فاحشی در جملات و کلمات را یافت. ولتر ظاهرا بسی بیش از تراژدی به کمدی دل بسته است؛ گویی دغدغه های تراژدی را نخ نما، تاریخ گذشته، و فخرفروشانه می داند؛ اما از آن سو بر ملی و محلی بودن طنزها و دشواری یا حتی عدم امکان ترجمه ی آنها تأکید دارد -زیرا به ظرایف احوال و عادات این یا آن قوم وابسته اند.
در پایان باید متذکر شد که سطع ترجمه متوسط به بالا است؛ هر جند در جاهایی مترجم نوعی جمله بندی یا معادل هایی را برگزیده که فهم را سخت می سازد. افزون بر این مترجم در تلاشی ستودنی انبوهی از پی نوشت ها را در پایان کتاب در مورد اسامی خاص و ... فراهم آورده است که حدود 80 صفحه از این کتاب را در بر گرفته اند. هر چند می توان اطناب را در این پی نوشت ها مشاهده کرد اما به هر حال نمی توان سپاسگزار این تلاش نبود.
June 28, 2014
أعتقد بأنه لا يمكن فهم الكتاب دون الظروف التي ظهر فيها، في البداية كان المؤلف الفرنسي قد زُج في السجن لبعض المشكلات مع أحد النبلاء، وكانت هذه ثاني مرة يعتقل فيها. فبعد خروجه من السجن هرب إلى إنجلترا، وأعجب بها، فكتب هذا الكتاب الذي يقارن بين فرنسا وإنجلترا. واعتقل الكاتب بسببه وتمت مصادرة الكتاب ومنع تداوله، وقصة مليئة بالمعاناة
المهم ؛ الكتاب لطيف، كما قلت سابقا بأنه مقارنة بين إنجلترا وفرنسا
المهم ؛ الكتاب لطيف، كما قلت سابقا بأنه مقارنة بين إنجلترا وفرنسا
July 19, 2024
Voltaire’s stay in England was a tonic for him, He mastered the English language within three months and made himself familiar with the best of English literature within a year.
He was introduced to the scholars, highbrows and literati by Lord Bolingbroke, and dined with them one after another. William Congreve, Horace Walpole, Alexandar Pope and Swift were charmed with the brilliance of the dark-eyed Frenchman who pretended to no pedigree, and asked none of others.
What surprised Voltaire was the autonomy with which Bolingbroke, Pope, Addison and Swift wrote whatever they pleased: they belonged to a nation that had sentiments of its own; a nation that had remade is religion, hanged its king, imported another, and built a parliament stronger than any ruler in Europe.
There was no Bastille in England, and no letters de catchet by which titled pensioners or royal idlers could send their untitled opponents to jail without cause and without trial.
England had thirty religions but no priest. England also had the boldest sect of all, the Quakers, who astonished all Christendom by behaving like Christians.
Above all, England throbbed with a virile intellectual activity……
Bacon’s name was still in the air, and the inductive method of enquiry was triumphing in every field. Hobbes had carried out the sceptical spirit of the Renaissance, and the practical spirit of his master, into so complete and outspoken a materialism as would have won him in France the honour of martyrdom for a fallacy.
Locke had written the Essay on the Human Understanding (1689) to analyse man’s psychological make-up from a purely rational standpoint, while Collins, Tyndal and other deists were calling into question every doctrine of the established church except the faith in God.
Newton had just died, but he had conquered the minds of men by means of his scientific discoveries.
Voltaire very rapidly absorbed all that England had to teach him — its literature, its science, and its philosophy.
He recorded his impressions in ‘Letters on the English’, which he circulated in manuscript among his friends as he did not dare to print them on account of their perfidious contents.
They contrasted English political liberty and intellectual individuality with French tyranny and bondage; they condemned the idle aristocracy and the title- grabbing clergy of France, with their perpetual recourse to the Bastille as the answer to every question, and they urged the middle classes to rise to their proper place in the state as they had done in England.
Thus these letters seemed to proclaim the approach of the French Revolution of 1789-92.
A classic tome. Do not miss it if you dig History.
He was introduced to the scholars, highbrows and literati by Lord Bolingbroke, and dined with them one after another. William Congreve, Horace Walpole, Alexandar Pope and Swift were charmed with the brilliance of the dark-eyed Frenchman who pretended to no pedigree, and asked none of others.
What surprised Voltaire was the autonomy with which Bolingbroke, Pope, Addison and Swift wrote whatever they pleased: they belonged to a nation that had sentiments of its own; a nation that had remade is religion, hanged its king, imported another, and built a parliament stronger than any ruler in Europe.
There was no Bastille in England, and no letters de catchet by which titled pensioners or royal idlers could send their untitled opponents to jail without cause and without trial.
England had thirty religions but no priest. England also had the boldest sect of all, the Quakers, who astonished all Christendom by behaving like Christians.
Above all, England throbbed with a virile intellectual activity……
Bacon’s name was still in the air, and the inductive method of enquiry was triumphing in every field. Hobbes had carried out the sceptical spirit of the Renaissance, and the practical spirit of his master, into so complete and outspoken a materialism as would have won him in France the honour of martyrdom for a fallacy.
Locke had written the Essay on the Human Understanding (1689) to analyse man’s psychological make-up from a purely rational standpoint, while Collins, Tyndal and other deists were calling into question every doctrine of the established church except the faith in God.
Newton had just died, but he had conquered the minds of men by means of his scientific discoveries.
Voltaire very rapidly absorbed all that England had to teach him — its literature, its science, and its philosophy.
He recorded his impressions in ‘Letters on the English’, which he circulated in manuscript among his friends as he did not dare to print them on account of their perfidious contents.
They contrasted English political liberty and intellectual individuality with French tyranny and bondage; they condemned the idle aristocracy and the title- grabbing clergy of France, with their perpetual recourse to the Bastille as the answer to every question, and they urged the middle classes to rise to their proper place in the state as they had done in England.
Thus these letters seemed to proclaim the approach of the French Revolution of 1789-92.
A classic tome. Do not miss it if you dig History.
October 30, 2021
When, in 1726, Voltaire is released from the Bastille (where he had been sent following an altercation with the 'chevalier' de Rohan) he was still not welcome in France and so was sent to England. Whatever! Undeterred, he had, anyway, enough of the pettiness of France and its censorship culture, where people ruled simply thanks to their questionable 'birth right'. He will go, and will bother to come back only two years later -in 1728.
His exile was short, but highly informative.
In these 'philosophical letters' (sometimes published under the title 'English letters') he offers about twenty letters or so to expose why England, at the time, rightly make the admiration of many. A constitutional monarchy, a better religious tolerance, a flourishing trade... The parallels with a France subjected to absolutism, bigotry, and economical hardships make for a stark and highly critical contrast! Claiming his admiration for Bacon, Locke, and Newton, he also dare to use such great intellectuals to severely criticise French philosophers such as Descartes and Pascal.
Politics, religion, philosophy, science, and, even, literature (Shakespeare, Alexander Pope...) the author does more that to portray a foreign nation: he punches a devastating uppercut right into the face of his own. Voltaire strikes again!
The establishment of the time had sent him to England to teach him a lesson. Well, he learnt more than one, and these were ones they certainly didn't expected! He came back more impertinent (yet challengingly relevant) than ever, and it makes for a strong criticism of what France was pre-Revolution. Brilliant.
His exile was short, but highly informative.
In these 'philosophical letters' (sometimes published under the title 'English letters') he offers about twenty letters or so to expose why England, at the time, rightly make the admiration of many. A constitutional monarchy, a better religious tolerance, a flourishing trade... The parallels with a France subjected to absolutism, bigotry, and economical hardships make for a stark and highly critical contrast! Claiming his admiration for Bacon, Locke, and Newton, he also dare to use such great intellectuals to severely criticise French philosophers such as Descartes and Pascal.
Politics, religion, philosophy, science, and, even, literature (Shakespeare, Alexander Pope...) the author does more that to portray a foreign nation: he punches a devastating uppercut right into the face of his own. Voltaire strikes again!
The establishment of the time had sent him to England to teach him a lesson. Well, he learnt more than one, and these were ones they certainly didn't expected! He came back more impertinent (yet challengingly relevant) than ever, and it makes for a strong criticism of what France was pre-Revolution. Brilliant.
September 7, 2013
Voltaire employs his usual blend of wit, satire, and humor to both elevate the liberal institutions of England over the still feudal Ancient Regime of France while also gently mocking the English in turn. He candidly discusses:
Religion: he is strongly in favor of religious tolerance, very strong (comparatively, at least) in England compared to France, but pokes gentle fun at odd English sects like the Quakers.
Government: in which he deplores the aristocracy of France compared to the meritocracy of England.
Science: in which he has the most unmitigated praise for English scientists, mostly Newton.
Literature: in which Shakespeare is a slightly barbaric English version of Corneille - how culture and language colors our views!
And, lastly, a discussion(/repudiation) of some of Pascal's Pensees, in which he endeavors to defend the human race against Pascal's Jansenist/Calvinist despair at the depravity of human nature. Which seemed sort of out of place in a collection of writings(/propaganda) discussing England, but fits in well with his philosophy and may have also been inspired by the Calvinists of various stripes he saw in England.
All in all, it's an funny, insightful, and thoroughly Voltairian work.
Religion: he is strongly in favor of religious tolerance, very strong (comparatively, at least) in England compared to France, but pokes gentle fun at odd English sects like the Quakers.
Government: in which he deplores the aristocracy of France compared to the meritocracy of England.
Science: in which he has the most unmitigated praise for English scientists, mostly Newton.
Literature: in which Shakespeare is a slightly barbaric English version of Corneille - how culture and language colors our views!
And, lastly, a discussion(/repudiation) of some of Pascal's Pensees, in which he endeavors to defend the human race against Pascal's Jansenist/Calvinist despair at the depravity of human nature. Which seemed sort of out of place in a collection of writings(/propaganda) discussing England, but fits in well with his philosophy and may have also been inspired by the Calvinists of various stripes he saw in England.
All in all, it's an funny, insightful, and thoroughly Voltairian work.
February 10, 2019
واحدة من الروائع، إن النفس البشرية مهما اختلف مذهبها، توجهها، طبقتها الاجتماعية، إنما تظل هي نفسها، دافعها ما تحس به وما تريده لا غير، تكذب نفسها وتصدقها، تتبعها وتلومها.
February 2, 2025
Letters on England is a contemporary view of the English Enlightenment written in Voltaire's signature satiric fashion. Voltaire left for England in 1726 and eventually published the letters back in France in 1733. Covering as diverse topics as Newtonian physics, Quakers, and Shakespeare, the letters provide a sweeping account of the advantages of liberal English society compared to that of conservative catholic France. The letters were censored in France not so much for their critique of French society but for discussing Locke’s heretical belief that the soul might not be immortal:
I decided to read the letters because of how influential the French Enlightenment was on the development of liberalism in Latin America, specifically religious tolerance. In the four letters on the Quakers, Voltaire talks about his experience meeting one, attending a ceremony, the rise of Quakerism with George Fox, the founding of Pennsylvania due to William Penn, and the eventual decline of the Quakers. The sum of the four letters plus the other three about religion emphasize the importance of religious tolerance championed by liberal thinkers like Benito Juárez. Voltaire also couldn’t help himself from poking fun at the superstitions of some Quakers such as the “justice” of God’s wrath against an alcoholic judge who died (due to excess drinking) two days after imprisoning some Quakers. Some of the later letters about Newton dragged a bit, one of Voltaire’s strengths was not mathematical explanation. Overall, however, it was an interesting introduction to Enlightenment Liberalism through the eyes of one of its major proponents.
“It is of advantage to society in general, that mankind should believe the soul to be immortal; faith commands us to do this”The obvious implication is that while this is advantageous for society it might not necessarily be true.
I decided to read the letters because of how influential the French Enlightenment was on the development of liberalism in Latin America, specifically religious tolerance. In the four letters on the Quakers, Voltaire talks about his experience meeting one, attending a ceremony, the rise of Quakerism with George Fox, the founding of Pennsylvania due to William Penn, and the eventual decline of the Quakers. The sum of the four letters plus the other three about religion emphasize the importance of religious tolerance championed by liberal thinkers like Benito Juárez. Voltaire also couldn’t help himself from poking fun at the superstitions of some Quakers such as the “justice” of God’s wrath against an alcoholic judge who died (due to excess drinking) two days after imprisoning some Quakers. Some of the later letters about Newton dragged a bit, one of Voltaire’s strengths was not mathematical explanation. Overall, however, it was an interesting introduction to Enlightenment Liberalism through the eyes of one of its major proponents.
April 15, 2023
قرأت أكثر من نصفه، ولم تعد لديّ الرغبة في إنهائهِ، رُبما لأنني لم أفهم معظم ما قرأته! ورُبما لأنه ليس ذا قيمة! أو قد يكون ذا قيمة، ولكنّي لستُ مُهيأ لإستيعاب ما بهِ الآن!
علي أيةٍ حال، أعتقد أن وقته لم يَحِنْ بعد.
علي أيةٍ حال، أعتقد أن وقته لم يَحِنْ بعد.
November 11, 2016
فى البدايه و من باب الحياده الادبيه فولتير اديب عظيم جدا سواء اتفقنا مع اراءه او لا اما بالنسبه لهذا الكتاب اذا ما قارنا افكاره حول الكويكر و الديانه الانجليكانيه و البرسبيتاريين و السوسنيه و الاروسيه و اللاثالوثيه و فى النهايه رايه حول افكار باسكال نجد انه لاينكر وجود الله و لكنه معترض على فكره الاديان فمثلا فى الرساله 7 هنلاقيه بيقول فى اخرها ( وان يعطى محمد النبى الامى اسيا و افريقيا دينا والايكون الساده كلارك و نيوتن و غيرهم يستطيعون اقامه جماعه صغيرة نرى نقصان عددها يوما بعد يوم)
حول مسيو باسكال
فى رايه عن الفلاسفه و هو بيقول (ليبحث حول هذا فى جميع اديان العالم و لير هل يوجد غير النصرانيه دين يشفى العله فى ذلك وهل عذا ما كان قد علمه الفلاسفه الذين عرضوا علينا ان ما هو خير فينا هو كل الخير)
فولتير يرد عليهو يقول لم يعلم الفلاسفه دينا وليست فلسفتهم ما يجب ان تناهض ولاتجد فيلسوفا ادعى انه موحى اليه وذلك يكون نبيا وليس فيلسوفا
اما بالنسبه لراى باسكال (عدم الرهان على وجود الله يعنى رهانا على عدم وجوده
فيقول له فولتير ابدأ باقناع عقلى الذى له نفع فى وجود الله لاريب ولكن اذا كان منهاجك يقول ان الله لم يكن الا من اجل قليل من الناس و ان عدد الاخيار بالغ القله واننى لااقدر على شئ بنفسى فارجو ان تقول لى اى نفع لى فى تصديقك بهذا تنتفى عن فولتير صفه الالحاد
حول مسيو باسكال
فى رايه عن الفلاسفه و هو بيقول (ليبحث حول هذا فى جميع اديان العالم و لير هل يوجد غير النصرانيه دين يشفى العله فى ذلك وهل عذا ما كان قد علمه الفلاسفه الذين عرضوا علينا ان ما هو خير فينا هو كل الخير)
فولتير يرد عليهو يقول لم يعلم الفلاسفه دينا وليست فلسفتهم ما يجب ان تناهض ولاتجد فيلسوفا ادعى انه موحى اليه وذلك يكون نبيا وليس فيلسوفا
اما بالنسبه لراى باسكال (عدم الرهان على وجود الله يعنى رهانا على عدم وجوده
فيقول له فولتير ابدأ باقناع عقلى الذى له نفع فى وجود الله لاريب ولكن اذا كان منهاجك يقول ان الله لم يكن الا من اجل قليل من الناس و ان عدد الاخيار بالغ القله واننى لااقدر على شئ بنفسى فارجو ان تقول لى اى نفع لى فى تصديقك بهذا تنتفى عن فولتير صفه الالحاد
March 1, 2018
This book is a collection of Voltaire’s observations of England, a country where he lived a few years in exile. It’s written with Voltaire’s singular wit and intelligence, and caused a flurry of controversy in France on it’s publication because Voltaire’s homeland is compared to England throughout the letters, and, for the most part, England comes out ahead in these comparisons.
This book has interesting things to say about the Quakers, religion, Isaac Newton, theater, and learned societies. Some of the pieces have aged into irrelevance (the explanations of Newton’s science and English theater for eg) but I still enjoyed it on the whole.
The French isn’t too difficult if you are a student of the language. Voltaire’s wit and warmth shine clearly through even if you speak the sort of French (as I do) where it’s likely you’re going to miss a lot of nuance. I’ve found that it is harder to read modern novels in french than older books because modern novels contain slang and a larger vocabulary. Books from the 19th century are the easiest (Verne, Dumas, Maupassant), but this 18th century work wasn’t too hard.
This book has interesting things to say about the Quakers, religion, Isaac Newton, theater, and learned societies. Some of the pieces have aged into irrelevance (the explanations of Newton’s science and English theater for eg) but I still enjoyed it on the whole.
The French isn’t too difficult if you are a student of the language. Voltaire’s wit and warmth shine clearly through even if you speak the sort of French (as I do) where it’s likely you’re going to miss a lot of nuance. I’ve found that it is harder to read modern novels in french than older books because modern novels contain slang and a larger vocabulary. Books from the 19th century are the easiest (Verne, Dumas, Maupassant), but this 18th century work wasn’t too hard.
February 9, 2021
الفيلسوف الفرنسي فولتير نشر هذه الرسائل في عام ١٧٣٤ م بعد أن مكث في إنجلترا وانبهر بنظام اﻻنجليز وطريقة عيشهم. وعندما كتب هذه الرسائل ونشرها في فرنسا،ﻻحقته السلطات وتم اعتقاله بسببها. فهو قد قارن بين إنجلترا وفرنسا، وأظهر إعجابه بالنظام انجليزي وذم الحال في فرنسا وانتقد مجتمعه بشدة. ففي بداية هذه الرسائل أكثر من مقارنة النظام السياسي بين إنجلترا وفرنسا ثم قارن اﻷدب والمسرحيات بين الثقافتين. ثم أكثر من مدح الفيزيائي انجليزي إسحاق نيوتن وشرح بعض نظرياته عن الجاذبية وتأثير القمر على المد والجزر، ووصف نيوتن بالعبقري الذي قلما وُجد في التاريخ مثله. وفي نهاية هذه الرسائل، ظهر لي أن فولتير به تعصب اتجاه عالم الرياضيات الفرنسي باسكال. فهو أخذ الكثير من المقوﻻت التي كتبها باسكال وانتقدها انتقاد ﻻذع، على الرغم بأن بعضها لم تبدو خاطئة في صميمها. إﻻ أن فولتير لم يتواني أن يصف كلامه بالفاسد، وأن الناس كثير ما ينخدعون بكلام العلماء المشهورين.
الكتاب ﻻ بأس به على الرغم بأني أحسست بأن هناك الكثير من الكلام الذي ﻻ يُرجى منه أي فائدة فيه...
الكتاب ﻻ بأس به على الرغم بأني أحسست بأن هناك الكثير من الكلام الذي ﻻ يُرجى منه أي فائدة فيه...
August 11, 2024
2.5 ⭐️.
Las cartas de Newton son las mejores, las de Pascal creo que ha ido buscando errores en cualquier pensamiento de él.
Hay cosas que estoy de acuerdo y otras que no me resuenan del todo, tiene una visión demasiado positivista del mundo... cosa que me repele un poco.
Las cartas de Newton son las mejores, las de Pascal creo que ha ido buscando errores en cualquier pensamiento de él.
Hay cosas que estoy de acuerdo y otras que no me resuenan del todo, tiene una visión demasiado positivista del mundo... cosa que me repele un poco.
December 26, 2018
His thoughts on British parliament, Newton, Descartes, Shakespear, Bacon, Locke, Pope, Blaise Pascal and then also, his opinions on Comedy, Tragedy, cosmology, astrology, education and small pox inoculation. He discusses all of this with brilliance and ease and to think he'd only learned English a few years back.
Voltaire's thoughts on science, religion and censorship are still so relevant and I would say in a world more and more obsessed with political correctness, a world where it seems everything and everyone offend anything and anyone, Voltaire's lucid humanism is much needed and welcome.
Voltaire's thoughts on science, religion and censorship are still so relevant and I would say in a world more and more obsessed with political correctness, a world where it seems everything and everyone offend anything and anyone, Voltaire's lucid humanism is much needed and welcome.
April 14, 2016
خرافية الجمال والعمق والحكمة ...من الكتب التي تريد ان تقراها مرة بعد مرة
دوما كنت اقول ان قصص جبران وكتبه ليست لتوضع في الرف
وانما تبقى بجانبك لتقراها مرار وتغرف منها
بعد ان قرات لفولتير وجدت نفس الشيء مما ذكرني بمعلومة قالها احد الاخوة بان جبران ادبه مقلد ومقتبس من الغربيين ومنهم فولتير
دوما كنت اقول ان قصص جبران وكتبه ليست لتوضع في الرف
وانما تبقى بجانبك لتقراها مرار وتغرف منها
بعد ان قرات لفولتير وجدت نفس الشيء مما ذكرني بمعلومة قالها احد الاخوة بان جبران ادبه مقلد ومقتبس من الغربيين ومنهم فولتير
June 17, 2013
قصتين فقط هي التي أعجبتني
الأبيض والأسود، الحكمة البشرية
لا أعلم هل البقية فلسفتها عميقة جداً تحتاج لتفكير شديد أم هي مجرد خربشات رتّبت ووضع لها عنوان
الأبيض والأسود، الحكمة البشرية
لا أعلم هل البقية فلسفتها عميقة جداً تحتاج لتفكير شديد أم هي مجرد خربشات رتّبت ووضع لها عنوان
Want to read
September 29, 2015التجربة الاولى لي مع فولتير
وها نحن نبدا ب ال (الفلسفة )
وها نحن نبدا ب ال (الفلسفة )
August 5, 2022
النجمتان عائدة إلى ترجمة عادل زعيتر الباذخة، أما أفكار فولتير فهي ثرثرة لا تسمن ولا تغني من جوع.
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