Letters on the English facts for kids
Title page from 1734 edition of Letters on the English
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| Author | Voltaire |
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| Original title | Lettres philosophiques |
| Country | France |
| Language | French |
| Subject | Philosophy |
| Publisher | Basile |
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Publication date
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1734 |
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Published in English
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1778 |
| Media type | |
Letters on the English (also known as Letters Concerning the English Nation) is a collection of essays. They were written by a famous French writer named Voltaire. He wrote them after living in Great Britain from 1726 to 1729.
The book was first published in English in 1733. Then, it came out in French the next year. In France, people saw it as a criticism of their government. Because of this, the book was quickly banned.
Later, in 1778, a new English version came out. Most modern English versions are based on the 1734 French edition. They are often called Philosophical Letters.
This book is a bit like Democracy in America by Alexis de Tocqueville. Both books explain a country to itself from an outsider's view. Voltaire often praised English culture, society, and government. He showed them in a good light compared to how things were in France.
Voltaire's Observations on England
Voltaire's Letters on the English has twenty-four main letters. Each letter talks about a different part of English life. He wrote about religion, politics, trade, science, and arts.
Religion in England
Voltaire starts his letters by discussing different religions in England. He writes about Quakers, Anglicans, Presbyterians, and Socinians.
The Quakers
In his first four letters, Voltaire describes the Quakers. He talks about their traditions, beliefs, and history. He liked how simple their religious practices were. For example, he praised their lack of baptism and communion. He also noted that they did not have priests. However, he still worried about how organized religions could sometimes control people.
Anglicans and Others
Letter 5 is about the Anglican religion. Voltaire thought it was better than Catholicism in some ways. He said the English clergy (church leaders) were more orderly than those in France. But he also criticized how Anglicans kept many old Catholic traditions. This included collecting tithes, which are payments to the church.
In Letter 7, Voltaire discusses the "Socinians." Their beliefs were similar to Voltaire's own deist ideas. Deism is a belief in a creator God who does not interfere with the universe. Voltaire noted that important thinkers like Isaac Newton and John Locke were Socinians. But he felt this was not enough to convince most people. He believed many preferred to follow less important writers.
English Government and Laws
In Letters 8 and 9, Voltaire looks at the English political system. He compares it to ancient Rome and to France.
The British Parliament
Letter 8 talks about the British parliament. Voltaire criticized England for fighting wars over religion. But he praised England for protecting freedom instead of allowing tyranny. He also defended the British way of handling justice. He pointed out that King Charles I was tried in court. This was different from how some French kings were simply murdered.
Justice and Taxes
In Letter 9, Voltaire gives a short history of the Magna Carta. This important document limited the power of the king. He also discusses how justice was given equally to everyone. He also wrote about how taxes were collected.
Trade and Business
In Letter 10, Voltaire praises England's trade system. He explains how it helped the English nation. He believed that trade helped make the English people free. This freedom, in turn, helped trade grow even more. Trade also made England rich and powerful at sea.
Voltaire also used this letter to criticize German and French nobles. These nobles often looked down on business. For Voltaire, a businessman who helps the world was more important than a noble.
Medicine and Health
In Letter 11, Voltaire supports the English practice of inoculation. This was a way to prevent diseases like small pox. Many people in Europe did not trust this method. This letter was likely written because of a smallpox outbreak in Paris in 1723. That outbreak killed 20,000 people.
Famous British Thinkers
Voltaire dedicated several letters to important British thinkers.
Francis Bacon and John Locke
Letter 12 talks about Francis Bacon. He wrote Novum Organum and is known as the father of experimental philosophy. This is a way of learning through experiments.
Letter 13 is about John Locke. He was a philosopher who had ideas about the human soul.
Isaac Newton and René Descartes
Letter 14 compares the British scientist Isaac Newton to the French philosopher René Descartes. When Newton died in 1727, some French thinkers compared him to Descartes. Voltaire argued that Descartes was also a great philosopher and mathematician.
Letter 15 focuses on Newton's law of universal gravitation. This law explains how gravity works. Letter 16 discusses Newton's work with optics, which is the study of light. Letter 17 talks about Newton's work in geometry and his ideas about the timeline of history.
Arts and Culture
Voltaire also wrote about British art and culture.
Tragedy and Comedy
In Letter 18, Voltaire discusses British tragedy, especially the plays of William Shakespeare. Voltaire even included a famous speech from Hamlet (the "To be, or not to be" part). He also gave a French translation of it.
In Letter 19, Voltaire talks about British comedy. He mentions playwrights like William Wycherley and William Congreve.
Honoring Writers
In Letter 23, Voltaire argues that the British respected their writers much more than the French did. They gave them more money and honor.
The last letter, Letter 24, discusses the Royal Society of London. This was a group for scientists. Voltaire compared it to the Académie Française, a similar group in France.
Voltaire's Thoughts on Pascal
In Letter 25, which was not part of the original twenty-four, Voltaire criticizes some ideas of Blaise Pascal. Pascal was another French thinker. Voltaire took quotes from Pascal's book Pensées and shared his own views.
One big difference between them was how they saw people. Pascal thought humans were miserable and needed fun to fill their empty lives. But Voltaire had a more hopeful view. He believed in the optimistic ideas of the Age of Enlightenment. This was a time when people focused on reason and progress.
