The Great Philosophers: Voltaire

(Paperback)

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Description

'Judge a man by his questions, rather than by his answers.' Voltaire

Voltaire was one of the first philosophers to be commercially successful internationally. Famous for his strong views on the importance of civil liberties, he was equally renowned for his wit. A prolific letter writer, he was also the author of over 2,000 books and pamphlets, including the novel Candide, which criticises and ridicules many of the events and philosophies of the time. It is widely recognised as one of the most glorious satires of the 18th century.

John Gray's short account is the ideal introduction to one of the great thinkers of all time.

Reviews

The virtue of these deceptively brief books is that they are the real thing * EVENING STANDARD *
The books should improve the cultural circulation of philosophy by their style as well as their substance * TES *
A promising venture * THE TIMES *
Rarely have intellectual sophistication and complexity come so cheap * FINANCIAL TIMES *
If you want to acquire some first-hand experience of philosophy and democracy you would do well to read this welcome series * TIMES HIGHER EDUCATIONAL SUPPLEMENT *

Author Bio

John Gray is a political philosopher with interests in analytic philosophy and the history of ideas. He retired in 2008 as School Professor of European Thought at the London School of Economics and Political Science.