Letters on England by Voltaire

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Letters on England by Voltaire
伏尔泰的英国通信集

Voltaire (1694 - 1778) spent his early thirties in England as an exile following the Bastille imprisonment for his satires. With passionate admiration, he then wrote this series of letters in English putting forward his views on the 18th century England, in contrast with the feudal society of his home country, encompassing aspects of religion, politics, sciences, and literature. The book was published in England and the free England received these philosophical, political, critical, poetical, heretical, and diabolical letters with delight, whereas in France, the book was denounced and publicly burnt in Paris as scandalous, contrary to religion, to morals, and respect for authority.

Summary by Xiaoyan Arrowsmith

伏尔泰(1694年-1778年)因其辛辣笔墨嘲讽皇族当局而入狱于巴士底狱(Bastille)。出狱后流亡于英格兰。正当其三十二岁至三十五岁。由此经历,他怀着钦佩之心,用英语写了这一系列信,表达他对18世纪英格兰的看法,涵盖了宗教,政治,科学和文学等各层次,且与法国,他的祖国的封建社会相对照。 此书先在英国出版,当时相对自由的英国人欣喜地接受了这些褒美,而在法国,这本书遭到谴责被认定与法国当时的宗教和道德观背道而驰,并在巴黎公开焚毁。