伏尔泰是18世纪法国启蒙运动的倡导人，他在文学、史学、哲学、自然科学和政治等方面写了大量著作，近百卷之多。法国启蒙运动的著名人物如狄德罗、卢梭、孔狄亚克、布封等人，无不是他的后辈，对他推崇备至，公认他是他们的导师。
About Voltaire
关于伏尔泰
Francois－Marie Arouet， better known by the pen name Voltaire， was a French Enlightenment writer， historian and philosopher famous for his wit and for his advocacy of civil liberties， including freedom of religion and free trade。 Voltaire was a prolific writer， producing works in almost every literary form including plays， poetry， novels， essays， and historical and scientific works。 He wrote more than 20，000 letters and more than 2，000 books and pamphlets。 He was an outspoken supporter of social reform， despite strict censorship laws and harsh penalties for those who broke them。 As a satirical polemicist， he frequently made use of his works to criticize intolerance， religious dogma and the French institutions of his day。
Francois－Marie Arouet was born in Paris， the youngest of the five children （only three of whom survived） of Francois Arouet （1650–1722）， a notary who was a minor treasury official， and his wife， Marie Marguerite d’Aumart （ca。 1660 – 13 July 1701）， from a noble family of the province of Poitou。 Voltaire was educated by Jesuits at the Collège Louis－le－Grand （1704–1711）， where he learned Latin and Greek； later in life he became fluent in Italian， Spanish and English。
From an early age， Voltaire displayed a talent for writing verse and his first published work was poetry。 He wrote two book－long epic poems， including the first ever written in French， the Henriade， and later， The Maid of Orleans， besides many other smaller pieces。
Voltaire was one of several Enlightenment figures （along with Montesquieu， John Locke， Jean－Jacques Rousseau， and émilie du Chatelet） whose works and ideas influenced important thinkers of both the American and French Revolutions。
伏尔泰不仅在哲学上有卓越成就，也以捍卫公民自由，特别是信仰自由和司法公正而闻名。他曾两次被捕入狱，主张开明的民主制度，强调自由和平等。尽管在他所处的时代审查制度十分严厉，伏尔泰仍然公开支持社会改革。他的论说以讽刺见长，常常抨击基督教会的教条和当时的法国教育制度。雨果曾评价说：“伏尔泰的名字所代表的不是一个人，而是整整一个时代。”他提倡卢梭所倡导的天赋人权，认为人生来就是自由和平等的，一切人都具有追求生存、追求幸福的权利，这种权利是天赋予的，不能被剥夺，这就是天赋人权思想。
伏尔泰信奉自然权利说，认为“人们本质上是平等的”，要求人人享有“自然权利”。他主张人人在法律面前平等，但又认为财产权利的不平等是不可避免的。他把英国的君主立宪制理想化了，认为最理想的是由“开明”的君主按哲学家的意见来治理国家。伏尔泰在启蒙运动的思想家中，反映上层资产阶级的利益，主张开明君主制。他在哲学上信奉英国唯物主义哲学家洛克的经验论。在哲学上，他承认物质世界的客观存在，肯定认识来源于感觉经验，但他又认为神是宇宙的“第一推动者”。他对劳动人民是十分鄙视的，认为他们只能干粗活，不能思考，说“当庶民都思考时，那一切都完了”。伏尔泰在反封建的启蒙运动中作出的巨大的贡献，是值得人们永远纪念的。
Key words ＆ Sentences
关键词句全知道
In my younger days I read Voltaire’s writings。
我年轻的时候读过伏尔泰的著作。
Voltaire used the earthquake to attack deistic optimism。
伏尔泰用地震来攻击那些自然神论乐观主义者。
Voltaire made sport of Needham， and he was wrong， for Needham’s eels prove that God is useless。
伏尔泰嘲笑过尼登，他不应当那么做，因为尼登的鳝鱼已经证明上帝的无用了。
For Voltaire， to be vulgarization is to find a truth and a universal theory separated from the religious。
对于他来说，是发现了另一种真理，一种既有普遍性，又独立于宗教之外的理论。
I was inspired by an observation by Voltaire to make my resolution “Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good。”
我从伏尔泰的观测中受到了启发，确定了我的观点“不要让完美成为阻碍。”
The French philosopher Voltaire wrote： there are some that only employ words for the purports of disguising their thoughts。
法国哲学家伏尔泰写道：有些人利用辞令来掩盖内心的真实想法。
What Voltaire hated more than others was the tyranny of organized religion。
伏尔泰最憎恨的就是有组织的宗教专制统治。
Voltaire held that it is only a very slight line of separation that divides the man of genius from the man of ordinary mould。
伏尔泰认为区分天才和一般类型的人的界线是非常细微的。
If you could write lucidly， simply， euphoniously and yet with liveliness， you would write perfectly， you would write like Voltaire。
你要是能写得清楚、简洁、和谐而又生动，那就到了炉火纯青的地步，可以与伏尔泰相媲美了。
Voltaire influenced many political theorists， philosophers， educators and historians。
伏尔泰影响了大批政治论者、哲学家、教育家、历史学家。
Voltaire is one of the most celebrated citizens in the history of France。
伏尔泰是法国历史上最著名的人之一。
There were busts of the heroes of antiquity， such as Molière， Racine， Corneille， Voltaire， etc。
那儿摆着古代英雄的半身塑像，诸如莫里哀、拉辛、柯奈、伏尔泰之流。
Western philosophers have always looked toward ancient cultures such as Greek and Hebrew for enlightenment。 Since Voltaire， Eastern philosophy has become another source of inspiration for them。
西方哲学家常常仰望古老文化诸如希腊、希伯来，以获得启示，从伏尔泰开始，东方哲学逐渐成为另一个启示他们的来源。
Birth－order scholars often observe that some of history’s great satirists–Voltaire， Jonathan Swift， Mark Twain–were among the youngest members of large families， a pattern that continues today。
出生顺序的学者们常常发现在历史上有一些伟大的讽刺作家——伏尔泰，乔纳森·斯威夫特，马克·吐温——都是一个大家庭中的年纪最小的成员。
Let’s Talk！
开始交流吧！
Mike： What are you reading·
麦克：你在读什么呢·
Daisy： I’m reading Voltaire’s writings。
黛西：我在读伏尔泰的著作。
Mike： Do you like Voltaire·
麦克：你喜欢伏尔泰吗·
Daisy： Yes， he is my favorite writer。
黛西：是的，他是我最喜欢的作家。
Mike： Isn’t he a philosopher·
麦克：他不是个哲学家吗·
Daisy： Yes， philosophers are always writers too。
黛西：是的，哲学家通常也是作家。
Mike： I remember he believes liberty。
麦克：我记得他信仰自由。
Daisy： That’s true。 I really admire that。
黛西：是的，我很敬仰他这一点。
Mike： What kind of works does he write·
麦克：他写的是哪种类型的作品·
Daisy： Various kinds。 Essays， novels， plays etc。
黛西：各种各样的作品。散文，小说，戏剧等等。
Mike： I’ve only read his essay on a textbook。
麦克：我只在教科书上看过他一篇散文。
Daisy： I’m reading his novel， it’s very good too， very interesting。
黛西：我在看他的小说，写得不错，很有意思。
Mike： Maybe I’ll read it sometime。
麦克：我有时间看看。
Francis Bacon
弗兰西斯·培根
他竭力倡导“读史使人明智；读诗使人灵秀；数学使人周密；科学使人深刻；伦理学使人庄重；逻辑修辞之学使人善辩。”他崇尚科学、发展科学的进步思想和崇尚知识的进步口号，一直推动着社会的进步。一生追求真理的思想家，被马克思称为“英国唯物主义和整个现代实验科学的真正始祖”。他就是培根。
About Bacon
关于培根
Francis Bacon was an English philosopher， statesman， scientist， lawyer， jurist， author and pioneer of the scientific method。 He served both as Attorney General and Lord Chancellor of England。 Although his political career ended in disgrace， he remained extremely influential through his works， especially as philosophical advocate and practitioner of the scientific method during the scientific revolution。