Voltaire (1694-1778)

"Appreciation is a wonderful thing; it makes what is excellent in others belong to us as well."

Who was Voltaire?

Born Francois-Marie Arouet, Voltaire was a French philosopher and one of the major figures during the era of Enlightenment. He was considered a great writer and expressed his beliefs, not just through the traditional sense, but also through plays, stories, and poems (his most famous work was a book called Candide). The intelligence and wit that Voltaire expressed in his writings made him very popular throughout his life. However, his wit and critiques would land him in a lot of trouble, as he would find himself exiled from Paris and France many times. Voltaire was famous for his support of civil liberties, religious freedom, social reform, separation of church and state, as well as his opposition to censorship and religious intolerance. His workers greatly influenced writers of both the American and French Revolution.

Character-Personally, I've always found courage and honesty as being important components of strong character, and Voltaire had them both. He was unrelenting in his sarcasm and critiques, and risked punishment from the state several times. Voltaire stood for freedoms and the rights of people, and sought a better society. However, there were speculations about him possibly being racist and anti-Semitic, though he did oppose slavery.

Rating: 9

Success-Determining the success of a philosopher has been a struggle for me throughout this entire process. On the one hand, Voltaire was a terrific writer and a big player in the Enlightenment period, whose works influenced two different revolutions. When he returned to Paris at the age of 83, he was viewed as a hero. On the other hand, it's hard to be successful when you get exiled from a country multiple times, and Voltaire did not directly influence anything and isn't considered one of the greatest philosophers in history.

Rating: 7

Positive Contributions-As I've said many times before when it comes to philosophers, they don't have the ability to save lives or free people. However, Voltaire's ideas did contribute to two revolutions and the writings of the US Constitution.

Rating: 7

Impact-Much in the same way as Locke, Voltaire's ideas spread to the most important parts of the world. As Europe was the power house of the globe during his time, Voltaire's contributions to the American and French Revolution were important.

Rating: 9

TOTAL: 8.3 (3rd of 7)