Letter 5 Of 'Candide' By Voltaire

Voltaire, also known as Francois-Marie Arouet, was the one of the most influential satirist of the French Enlightenment. Initially a witty and satirical playwright, Voltaire was first introduced to the works of Locke and Newton during a period of time spent in England. Locke and Newton proceeded to have great impact on Voltaire’s works. Voltaire’s avid support for monarchy and hate for organized religion led him to write one of the most influential satire pieces of the time Candide (1759). Voltaire became an avid voice of the Enlightenment through his vast amounts of witty and sarcastic works that supported reason over myth and intolerance. Voltaire pointed out the problems of the age in a satirical way. Voltaire spoke out about multiple problems facing England at the time, some of which being intolerance and superiority in religion, and the ignorance of the people towards medication. …show more content…
He was extremely against the intolerance and organization of superiority that the church presented and used his satirical style to speak out against the Presbyterian and Anglican Church in particular. In Letter 5 of Voltaire’s Letters on England, he specifically examines and criticizes the Anglican Church, calling the letter On the Anglican Religion. Voltaire presents the favorable aspects and unfavorable aspects of the Anglican Church in relation to the Catholic Church of France, in Letter 5. Voltaire notices that the English clergymen have more morals then those of the France when he states, “in morals the Anglican clergy are more virtuous than the French” (Voltaire 38). At the same time, Voltaire disapproves of the sacramental aspect of the Catholic Church that the Anglican Church continues, and the internal system of hierarchy both employ. So while the Anglican Church offered more morality, it continued to follow the traditions of the Roman Catholic Church in France that had made it