Quotes by Voltaire

Voltaire

Voltaire

French writer and philosopher (ps. of Fran ois Marie Arouet)

Lived from: 1694 - 1778

Category: Philosophers | Writers (Contemporary) Country: FlagFrance

Born: 21 november 1694 Died: 30 may 1778

  • If there were only one religion in England there would be danger of despotism, if there were two, they would cut each other's throats, but there are thirty, and they live in peace and happiness.
  • In general, the art of government consists in taking as much money as possible from one party of the citizens to give to the other.
  • When he who hears does not know what he who speaks means, and when he who speaks does not know what he himself means, that is philosophy.
  • Every man is the creature of the age in which he lives; very few are able to raise themselves above the ideas of the time.
  • Woe to the makers of literal translations, who by rendering every word weaken the meaning! It is indeed by so doing that we can say the letter kills and the spirit gives life.
  • I was never ruined but twice; once when I lost a lawsuit and once when I won one.
  • This poem will never reach its destination. [On Rousseau's Ode To Posterity]
  • 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.
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  • Judge a person by their questions, rather than their answers.
    ― Voltaire
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  • I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.
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  • The world embarrasses me, and I cannot dream that this watch exists and has no watchmaker.
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  • A long dispute means that both parties are wrong
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  • A witty saying proves nothing.
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  • All men are born with a nose and ten fingers, but no one was born with a knowledge of God.
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  • Anyone who seeks to destroy the passions instead of controlling them is trying to play the angel.
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  • How I like the boldness of the English, how I like the people who say what they think!
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  • I advise you to go on living solely to enrage those who are paying your annuities. It is the only pleasure I have left.
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  • If there were only one religion in England there would be danger of despotism, if there were two, they would cut each other's throats, but there are thirty, and they live in peace and happiness.
    ― Voltaire
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  • In general, the art of government consists in taking as much money as possible from one party of the citizens to give to the other.
    ― Voltaire
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  • In my life, I have prayed but one prayer: oh Lord, make my enemies ridiculous. And God granted it.
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  • It is dangerous to be right when the government is wrong.
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  • It is hard to free fools from the chains they revere.
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  • Marriage is the only adventure open to the cowardly.
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  • Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities.
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  • To hold a pen is to be at war.
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  • All kinds are good except the kind that bores you.
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  • Animals have these advantages over man: They have no theologians to instruct them, their funerals cost them nothing, and no one starts lawsuits over their wills.
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  • If God did not exist, it would be necessary to invent Him.
    Original: Si Dieu n'existait pas, il faudrait l'inventer."
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What are the most famous quotes from Voltaire?

The two most famous quotes from Voltaire are:

  • "Judge a person by their questions, rather than their answers."
  • "I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it."

When did Voltaire live?

Voltaire was born in 1694 and died in the year 1778.