2. HELLO NEW
FRIENDS!
Good morning little friends! I think that, if
you have started to study one of the most
important parts of history like is the
ENLIGHTENMENT, you will probably know
who I am, but, just in case, for the people who
don’t know me, I am Voltaire Blackmouth
(François-Marie Arouet ; Voltaire) and I am
going to tell you some details about my life,
some events that I did, and some things that
I think. Are you ready?
WELCOME TO MY LIFE!
3. MY LIFE
I was born on 21
November in 1694, in
Paris and I am the
youngest of the five
children. My parents
were François Arouet,
a notary who was a
minor treasury
official and Marie
Marguerite d'Aumary,
from a noble family
of the province of
Poitou. I was educated
by Jesuits at the
Collège Louis-le-
Grand, where I
learned Latin and
Greek; later in life I
became fluent in
Italian, Spanish and
4. I had decided to be a
writer, against the
wishes of my father who
wanted me to become a
notary.
And I think that
maybe, I don’t know
exactly and I don’t
know how I can know it,
I will die on 30 May, in
1778.
And now, you probably
are thinking, ok… and,
what happens? Why are
you here with us? Ok,
no problem, I am going
to explain you who I am
and why I am a little
important in history.
5. HISTORY AND ME
I am one of the principal representatives of the
Enlightenment, a period that emphasized the power of
the human reason, of the science and the respect
towards the humanity.
In 1746 I was elected a member of the French
Academy.
I also am a prolific writer and I have produced works
in almost every literary form including poetry and
other activities. I really had a lot of exist documents
of the literature’s world.
6. I am an outspoken supporter of social reform, despite strict
censorship laws and harsh penalties for those who broke
them. As a satirical polemicist, I frequently make use of
my works to criticize intolerance, religious dogma and the
French institutions of my day.
I am one of several Enlightenment figures (with my
friends Montesquieu, John Locke and Jean-Jacques
Rousseau) whose works and ideas influenced important
thinkers of both the American and French Revolutions.
I’ve always defended the freedom of thought, the tolerance
and the justice.
7. Society: Say
something!But the most important
event is that I've defended
the necessity of the
existence of a parliament
to limit the king’s power.
And I've also defended the
existence of a fiscal
system. In other words:
I think that the parliament
must have more
importance in the
decisions of the town; not
only the king has to say
the “last word”. I think
that the society also have
to express an opinion about
the decisions and these
decisions must be taken
into account.
8. Hey, I’m the same person than
you!
I also think that everybody have to pay the
same taxes, independently of the social class
that anybody could have. We are equals!
Why some of us have to pay more taxes than
the rest of the people? Why peasants have to
pay more than nobility?
I am a noble, and I should pay the same as
anyone!
9. GOOD BYE AND THANK
YOU!
Ok, so… thank you very much for
listening to myself, nice to meet
you, and I hope will see you
many many many years later
where I live now!
And please…
BE HAPPY!
10. GOOD BYE AND THANK
YOU!
Ok, so… thank you very much for
listening to myself, nice to meet
you, and I hope will see you
many many many years later
where I live now!
And please…
BE HAPPY!
