The Fables of Reason: A Study of Voltaire's "Contes Philosophiques"

by Roger Pearson

Overview

This is the first comprehensive study in English of Voltaire's contes philosophiques—the philosophical tales for which he is best remembered and which include his masterpiece Candide. Pearson situates each story in its historical and intellectual context and offers new readings in light of modern critical thinking. He rejects the traditional view that Voltaire's contes were the private expression of his philosophical perplexity, and argues that it is narrative that is Voltaire's essential mode of thought. His book is a witty, lucid, and scholarly guide to the "fables of reason" through which Voltaire's skepticism undermined the contemporary religious and philosophical explanations of human experience.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780198158806
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	06/24/1993
Pages:	280
Product dimensions:	5.69(w) x 8.75(h) x 0.84(d)
Lexile:	1440L (what's this?)

About the Author

The Queen's College, Oxford

Editorial Reviews

"Pearson...makes a compelling case for the fundamental importance of narrative in Voltaire's writings....Perceptive analyses of lesser-known tales as well as the better-known yield valuable insights."—Choice

"A very good book....Pearson has surveyed what he calls the ‘fables of reason' in a solid, exegetical style and has provided, at the end of his essay, a provocative discussion of the two radical interpretations conferred on Voltaire - as the apostle of Enlightenment (Paul Valery) or the precursor of twentieth-century totalitarianism (Isaiah Berlin). What distinguishes Pearson's essay is his readiness to take on the big names in Voltaire studies and offer more nuanced views of Voltair's purposes and attitudes."—Eighteenth-Century Fiction

"In a much needed, thorough reexamination of Voltaire's philosophic tales, Roger Pearson brilliantly uncovers in The Fables of Reason: A Study of Voltaire's Contes Philosophiques the literary and linguistic strategies that place narrative ambiguity at the heart of Voltaire thought....Pearson's prose is lively and engaging, his observations keen and witty; in short, his readers will have a difficult time resisting the temptation to re-read Voltaire's stories at least once again."—French Review

From the Publisher