Voltaire
Voltaire
François-Marie Arouet, known by his nom de plume Voltaire, was a French Enlightenment writer, historian, and philosopher famous for his wit, his attacks on the established Catholic Church, and his advocacy of freedom of religion, freedom of expression, and separation of church and state...
NationalityFrench
ProfessionHistorian
Date of Birth21 November 1694
CityParis, France
CountryFrance
bravery coward vain
It is vain for the coward to flee; death follows close behind; it is only by defying it that the brave escape.
pleasure enjoy knows
To really enjoy pleasures, you must know how to leave them.
prejudice crowds vulgar
Prejudices are what rule the vulgar crowd.
hope virtue should
Hope should no more be a virtue than fear; we fear and we hope, according to what is promised or threatened us.
superfluous
The superfluous is the most necessary.
sins-not genius sin
Feeble verses are those which sin not against rules, but against genius.
happy-times history virtue
History in general is a collection of crimes, follies, and misfortunes among which we have now and then met with a few virtues, and some happy times.
strong eye certain
He who has heard the same thing told by 12,000 eye-witnesses has only 12,000 probabilities, which are equal to one strong probability, which is far from certain.
shyness lost states
It is only through timidity that states are lost.
misery spirit spirituality
He who doesn't have the spirit of his time, has all its misery.
egypt ease ships
When his highness sends a ship to Egypt, does he trouble his head whether the mice on board are at their ease or not?
chosen
I have chosen to be happy because it is goo for my health.
illusion disaster
All is but illusion and disaster.
astrology etc astronomy
I am convinced that everything has come down to us from the banks of the Ganges, astronomy, astrology, metempsychosis, etc..