Candide

Voltaire, 1694 to 1778, irritated the established order throughout his life. His father wanted him to be a lawyer like himself, but Voltaire was determined to write. He wrote in all forms: drama, poetry, fiction, satire, history, philosophy. He became a major influence Voltaire was the rarest bright star among the intelligentsia, not just of his age, but of all ages, and his writing kept him in trouble for most of his career. He supported civil rights, freedom of speech and religion, and the separation of church and state. He was especially despised by Catholic hierarchy, and spent time in several famous jails. He had friends at the highest levels of European society and regularly corresponded with heads of state from Catherine the Great of Russia to Frederick the Great of Prussia. Candide, an answer to the philosopher Leibniz, who posited the theory that this is the best of all possible worlds, in his most well-known work. He died with a sincere belief in God, but not the Church.