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Voltaire

92 quotes

Voltaire (1694–1778) was the pen name of François-Marie Arouet, a French Enlightenment writer, historian, and philosopher famous for his wit, advocacy of civil liberties, and criticism of established religion and institutions. His satirical novel *Candide* remains one of the most widely read works of French literature.

“To the living we owe respect, but to the dead we owe only the truth.”

— Voltaire

Respect

All Quotes by Voltaire

“In general, the art of government consists of taking as much money as possible from one class of citizens to give to another.”

— Voltaire

Art

“The best government is a benevolent tyranny tempered by an occasional assassination.”

— Voltaire

Best

“Love has features which pierce all hearts, he wears a bandage which conceals the faults of those beloved. He has wings, he comes quickly and flies away the same.”

— Voltaire

Love

“Superstition is to religion what astrology is to astronomy the mad daughter of a wise mother. These daughters have too long dominated the earth.”

— Voltaire

Religion

“Business is the salt of life.”

— Voltaire

Business

“Men hate the individual whom they call avaricious only because nothing can be gained from him.”

— Voltaire

Men

“It is said that the present is pregnant with the future.”

— Voltaire

Future

“The art of government is to make two-thirds of a nation pay all it possibly can pay for the benefit of the other third.”

— Voltaire

Art

“Common sense is not so common.”

— Voltaire

Intelligence

“God gave us the gift of life it is up to us to give ourselves the gift of living well.”

— Voltaire

Birthday

“Men use thought only as authority for their injustice, and employ speech only to conceal their thoughts.”

— Voltaire

Men

“Society therefore is an ancient as the world.”

— Voltaire

Society

“Tears are the silent language of grief.”

— Voltaire

Sympathy

“It is vain for the coward to flee death follows close behind it is only by defying it that the brave escape.”

— Voltaire

Death

“It is not love that should be depicted as blind, but self-love.”

— Voltaire

Love

“To the living we owe respect, but to the dead we owe only the truth.”

— Voltaire

Respect

“Of all religions, the Christian should of course inspire the most tolerance, but until now Christians have been the most intolerant of all men.”

— Voltaire

Men

“It is an infantile superstition of the human spirit that virginity would be thought a virtue and not the barrier that separates ignorance from knowledge.”

— Voltaire

Knowledge

“One merit of poetry few persons will deny: it says more and in fewer words than prose.”

— Voltaire

Poetry

“He was a great patriot, a humanitarian, a loyal friend provided, of course, he really is dead.”

— Voltaire

Great