Showing results by author "Voltaire" in All Categories

If we were as tiny as ants to another being, what would they make of our philosophies? The great satirist Voltaire imagines alien visitors who have opinions. Bedtime stories are narrated by the world's most celebrated voices and written with no beginning, middle, or end so you don't stay up to hear what happens next. They're interesting enough to give your mind something to focus on, but delivered in a way that encourages sleep.

The 18th Century Classics Collection steps into the vibrant and tumultuous world of 18th century Europe. With this captivating anthology of some of the most influential works of 1700s literature, we encounter biting satire, passionate romance, and political tumultuousness. From the philosophical musings of Candide to the dark, gothic suspense of The Monk, this collection provides an eclectic mix of narrative styles and genres, capturing the essence of an age marked by intellectual revolution, social upheaval, and profound artistic expression.

Something between a tale and a polemic, these 'fables of reason' are feats of narrative compression and contain much of Voltaire's best and funniest writing. From ribald tales of adultery to conversations between cosmic travellers, the stories in this collection pose moral, philosophical and social questions. Listener and protagonist alike find their assumptions challenged as Voltaire mingles rationality and fantasy.

Candide and his tutor Pangloss travel the globe trying to follow the philosophy "All is for the best in this, the best of all possible worlds". However, they are stung and let down at every turn, being robbed, tortured, and ridiculed, amongst other trials. On hearing about their often disasterous travels, a listener feels unfortunately less than empathetic, and can't help themselves laughing out loud at this very funny account of the trail our optimistic travellers take.

Brought up in the household of a powerful Baron, Candide is an open-minded young man whose tutor, Pangloss, has instilled in him the belief that 'all is for the best'. But when his love for the baron's rosy-cheeked daughter is discovered, Candide is cast out to make his own way in the world. And so he and his various companions begin a breathless tour of Europe, South America and Asia, as an outrageous series of disasters befall them - earthquakes, syphilis, a brush with the Inquisition, murder - sorely testing the young hero's optimism.

Candide, is a French satire written in 1759 by Voltaire, a philosopher of the Age of Enlightenment. One of the finest satires ever written, this lively tale follows the absurdly melodramatic adventures of the youthful Candide, who is forced into the army, flogged, shipwrecked, betrayed, robbed, separated from his beloved Cunégonde, and tortured by the Inquisition. As Candide witnesses calamity upon calamity, he becomes disillusioned and discovers that all is not always for the best....

Raised by her grandparents when her mother chooses drugs over her daughter, Erin knows she isn't like other kids. Then, her world is shaken a second time by her mother's reappearance. Being a teenager is never easy, but just when Erin thinks she has her life on track, her mother shows up and warms her way back into Erin's life. Can an addict really ever kick the addiction? How many lives will drugs destroy?

In the tradition of his very popular Candide, Zadig is what might be called a "philosophical tale." Zadig, a handsome young man with a fine education, is puzzled by the uncertainties of his destiny. He attains great success in government but is unsuccessful in love. Despite his wisdom and shrewdness, he meets with a number of misfortunes. The central question of the story is, "Why do bad things happen to good people?"

"Zadig ou la Destinée" est un conte philosophique de Voltaire, inspiré d'un conte persan. Voltaire y raconte les mésaventures et les revers de fortune d'un jeune homme né à Babylone. Ce conte se place à la confluence de trois genres littéraires : le conte de fées (mis à la mode par Perrault et les Contes des Mille et une Nuits), le roman picaresque (Zadig décrit une ascension sociale, suivie de coups du sort) et le roman sentimental (Zadig relate les tribulations de deux amants éloignés par la vie).

When Candide is cast out of his sheltered life, he embarks on a journey filled with war, natural disasters, betrayal, and heartbreak—all while clinging to the optimistic philosophy of his mentor, Pangloss. As he travels across Europe and the Americas, encountering a bizarre array of characters and suffering the harsh realities of life, Candide’s faith in idealism is repeatedly tested. In this classic satire, Voltaire skewers the pretensions of philosophy, religion, and social systems, offering a compelling critique of human nature.

These two classic coming-of-age stories by Voltaire parody the romanticism of his day with the ruthless wit that has made him the undisputed master of social commentary.

The French Classics Collection brings together 18 of the greatest works of fiction ever written in French - here collected into one audiobook and all translated into English. Featuring grand epics of love, loss, and survival, as in Les Miserables, to tales of adventure in Jules Verne's Journey to the Center of the Earth, and romances such as Madame Bovary, alongside many more grand stories from 17th, 18th, and 19th century France, this collection will whisk you away into other worlds with some of the greatest characters in literature within some of the greatest novels ever written.

"Candide ou l'Optimisme" est un conte philosophique de Voltaire, considéré comme l'un de ses chefs d'œuvre. C'est le récit du voyage de formation d'un jeune homme naïf, chassé du meilleur des mondes possibles à la suite d'une leçon de physique expérimentale. Voltaire y manie l'ironie à l'encontre du conservatisme de la société de son époque. Candide, le jeune homme innocent, après avoir vécu toutes sortes d'aventures autour du monde, finit par se transformer en philosophe.

Micromegas: A Philosophical History by Voltaire, in this illustrated edition, offers a satirical and philosophical journey through the cosmos. Originally written in 1752, this short story is a reflection of Voltaire's wit and Enlightenment ideals. The narrative follows the adventures of Micromegas, an extraterrestrial being from a distant star, as he travels through the universe. Micromegas encounters various civilizations, engaging in conversations that serve as a vehicle for Voltaire to critique human nature, society, and the limitations of knowledge.

"Dans une de ces planètes qui tournent autour de l'étoile nommée Sirius, il y avait un jeune homme de beaucoup d'esprit, que j'ai eu l'honneur de connaître dans le dernier voyage qu'il fit sur notre petite fourmilière ; il s'appelait Micromégas, nom qui convient fort à tous les grands. Il avait huit lieues de haut : j'entends, par huit lieues, vingt-quatre mille pas géométriques de cinq pieds chacun."

Tous les événements sont enchaînés dans le meilleur des mondes possibles : car enfin si vous n'aviez pas été chassé d'un beau château à grands coups de pied dans le derrière pour l'amour de mademoiselle Cunégonde, si vous n'aviez pas été mis à l'Inquisition, si vous n'aviez pas donné un bon coup d'épée au baron, si vous n'aviez pas perdu vos moutons du bon pays d'Eldorado, vous ne mangeriez pas ici des cédrats confits et des pistaches.

Conte philosophique considéré comme l'un des chefs-d'œuvre de Voltaire, "Candide" frappe par sa légèreté, et sa justesse. Le héros est un jeune homme crédule à qui son précepteur, Pangloss, inculque une théorie très simpliste sur l'optimisme. Les mésaventures du jeune héros mettent à mal cette doctrine. Cela permet à Voltaire de se moquer de toutes les théories métaphysiques qui ne résistent pas à l'épreuve des faits.

Candide is characterized by its tone as well as by its erratic, fantastical, and fast-moving plot. A picaresque novel with a story similar to that of a more serious coming-of-age narrative, it parodies many adventure and romance clichés, the struggles of which are caricatured in a tone that is bitter and matter-of-fact. Still, the events discussed are often based on historical happenings, such as the Seven Years' War and the 1755 Lisbon earthquake.

La littérature française du XVIIIe siècle évolue selon deux orientations majeures : le mouvement des Lumières et ses remises en cause des fondamentaux de la société, et l'émergence d'une sensibilité qui donnera par la suite naissance au mouvement romantique. Cette collection de citations présente la pensée de six figures incontournables du XVIIIe siècle sous forme concise, accessible et pratique.

Candide est un jeune garçon vivant au château du baron de Thunderten-tronckh qui se trouve en Westphalie. Il a pour maître Pangloss, philosophe qui enseigne la "métaphysico-théologo-cosmolonigologie", et qui professait, à l'instar de Leibniz, que l'on vit dans le meilleur des mondes possibles.