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Voltaire: Difference between revisions
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==Biography== | ==Biography== | ||
Voltaire was born François-Marie Arouet on November 21, 1694 in Paris, France. He was the son of Francois Arouet, a minor treasury official, and Marie Marguerite D’Aumard. Upon his birth, it was thought that he would not live very long, so a priest came to baptize him immediately, hoping to save his soul (Darrow) | Voltaire was born François-Marie Arouet on November 21, 1694 in Paris, France. He was the son of Francois Arouet, a minor treasury official, and Marie Marguerite D’Aumard. Upon his birth, it was thought that he would not live very long, so a priest came to baptize him immediately, hoping to save his soul (Darrow). During this time, France was close to bankruptcy and was basically run under the rule of one church. The church in itself set a standard of beliefs that must be followed explicitly, at least in all outward appearances. Literature questioning the church's accepted practices would be deemed heretic and destroyed, the author most likely suffering the same fate (Darrow). Thus, Voltaire had plenty to write about in his works. | ||
His early education was the responsibility of an irreligious priest named Chateauneuf, who tired to keep Voltaire's mind free of the superstition of the times (Darrow). Near age 10, Voltaire was sent away to a boys' school, where the the first stages of his writing began. Later, Voltaire's father decided that his son should be an attorney, even though Voltaire had already expressed his desire to write. His father said, "Literature is the profession of the man who wishes to be useless to society, and a burden to his relatives, and to die of hunger" (Darrow). However, Voltaire did not die of hunger or become a burden on society. Instead his works often provided great social sommentary, and mocked society and its accepted practices. Because of the nature of his works, Voltaire became a semi-regular inmate at the Bastille. | His early education was the responsibility of an irreligious priest named Chateauneuf, who tired to keep Voltaire's mind free of the superstition of the times (Darrow). Near age 10, Voltaire was sent away to a boys' school, where the the first stages of his writing began. Later, Voltaire's father decided that his son should be an attorney, even though Voltaire had already expressed his desire to write. His father said, "Literature is the profession of the man who wishes to be useless to society, and a burden to his relatives, and to die of hunger" (Darrow). However, Voltaire did not die of hunger or become a burden on society. Instead his works often provided great social sommentary, and mocked society and its accepted practices. Because of the nature of his works, Voltaire became a semi-regular inmate at the Bastille. | ||