Biography

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^portrait of Voltaire. ===**Early On...** ===  Voltaire was born as Francois-Marie Arouet in 1694 in Paris, France to a middle class family. He was well educated at a Jesuit school and studied law as well. He worked under the French Ambassador to Holland before he devoted himself fully to writing. ===** Controversial Topics ** ===

 Voltaire advocated for civil liberities such as free speech, freedom of religion. He wrote in a variety of forms including poetry, prose, plays, essays, and pamphlets. His work was unpopular with authorities of the period and he was often punished under strict censorship laws. As a Deist, Voltaire believed in a world based on logic and reason, where God created the world but does not intervene in the daily workings of the world. As a result of this belief Voltaire often criticized organized religions in his writing. The controversy of his writing landed him sentences in the Bastille twice, one of which he avoided by agreeing to a 3 year exile to England instead. It was during his 11 month stay at the Bastille that he took on the name Voltaire.

 Mme Du Chatelet
  Voltaire participated in a 16 year affair with Emilie Chatalet. The two did not keep their affair secret, breaking all the societal rules of the time. The two even lived together at Chatalet's country chateau. Their relationship included an intellectual component and the two often discussed matters and worked together in areas such as mathematics, science, and philosophies. After Chatalet's death Voltaire moved to Germany for a period until settling again in Switzerland.

 Ferney, France
  After working in Switzerland in 1755, Voltaire moved back to French soil in 1759. Voltaire made Ferney, just across the Swiss border, his new home. Here he had one of the most productive eras of his life. At Ferney Voltaire participated in the agricultural revolution of the time, and was active in the area. Voltaire hosted and entertained many intellectual minds at his home in Ferney. (It was in Ferney that Candide was written). Voltaire died in 1778 while in Paris directing his play Irene.