raries to act upon intolerance, tyranny and superstition. They did not listen to him, and he had no following like others after him would have, and that negated his influential abilities dramatically. Voltaire saw literature as a medium which should be useful and concerned with problems of the day. He attacked war and self interest, and claimed that eventually "manners are softened, the human mind becomes more enlightened, and separate nations are brought closer to one another"16 He claims that his morality was formed on belief in freedom of thought and respect for all individuals, and in 1763 he published the Treaty of Tolerance. He wrote to condemn religious hatred and in support of universal acceptance of all people. Voltaire asked the Enlightenment to do what was possible to improve humanity, for people not to seek the Garden of Eden, but to work in a garden of their own making. Voltaire did not support democracy however.He was at one with many in his time who believed that enlightened depotism, combined with an institutionalization of tolerance and liberty, was the best form of government. Voltaire feared giving too much power to the masses, who he viewed as uneducated and unenlightened. 17Voltaire was unable to accept the beliefs of the lower and uneducated classes and also had very strong anti-Semitic views, which went against his entire idea of universal tolerance. He was nevertheless accepted as a hero by the people who saw him as portraying the best of the mood of the times. His ideas were obscure and radical during the Enlightenment.. As people became more educated and literate, it was easier for them to grasp new concepts of living, and thinkers like Voltaire were more easily accepted.The problems that existed in the sixteenth century are still evident in the twentieth century. Intolerance has grown stronger, and apartheid, government enforced racism is acceptable. When Voltaire wrote about his opinions, the publ...
