Casanova and Voltaire

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Parallels (1). As well as their intellectual and literary interests the lives of the two men overlapped in other ways. Although Voltaire was 30 years older than Casanova they were contemporaries whose lives most fruitful period coincided with the High Enlightenment (1730 to 1780). They were both exceptionally long-lived by the standards of the day. They were both self-made men. Both were regularly in trouble with the authorities and spent the majority of their adult lives in exile.
Who Was Casanova?
One of the most significant individuals in Casanova’s life was Voltaire. Casanova aspired to be recognised as a serious man of letters and it was Voltaire, the Enlightenment’s great Patriarch, who he sought to match himself against.
Histoire de ma Vie
Casanova is most famous for his autobiography ‘History of my life’ (‘Histoire de ma vie’) which is now recognised as one of the great works of European literature. At almost one and a quarter million words, it is twice the length of Tolstoy’s ‘War and Peace’, skilfully crafted, and full of intelligence, wit and psychological insight. It is also a philosophical work: an examination of libertinism.
Like Voltaire, Casanova wrote histories, (notably ‘History of the Polish troubles’, 1774) and in terms of the use of original sources and objectivity was closer to the standards of modern historical scholarship than Voltaire. Polish historian Maciej Forycki (Casanova: Enlightenment philosopher, 2016) describes Casanova as ‘a refined observer of political culture and the daily life of Polish elites in the 1760s … an incontestable erudite and philosopher’.
Iliad - Wikipedia
Vase depicting the Trojan war. Casanova translated much of Homer’s ‘Iliad’ (although a lack of financing meant he was unable to complete it) and, it would appear, he played a small part in the writing and first production of Mozart’s ‘Don Giovanni’.
Casanova’s Life and Times
'Wheel of Fortune' by Kev Butters, artist of 'Casanova in Paris: The Shadows of the King' - an online graphic novel created by Kev Butters and Dave Thompson.
Voltaire’s legacy included over 100 volumes of published works across a wide range of topics, genres and forms (literary, historical, political, scientific and philosophical), various of them having been acclaimed as masterpieces, and over 100 volumes of correspondence. Also, he almost single-handedly he set the Enlightenment agenda of the eighteenth century, shifting the focus of attention from abstract philosophical debate to practical actions that would benefit mankind.
Like Voltaire, Casanova was an accomplished writer across a wide range of genres and topics: autobiography, poetry, drama, science fiction, parody, essay writing, literary criticism, satire, philosophy, religion, mathematics, technology and history. Like Voltaire, he was a pamphleteer and avid letter writer. In his last period of stay in Venice (1774-1783) he also wrote his own monthly journal. He did not match the productivity of Voltaire but his output was impressive nonetheless.
The Story of my Escape: The Story of my Escape from the prisons of the Republic of Venice otherwise known as the Leads
Another major work (also a philosophical tale) was Casanova’s science-fiction novel ‘Icosameron’. Also, he composed philosophical dialogues (‘Le Philosophe at le théologien’). He had his own European blockbuster, ‘History of my escape from the prisons of the Republic of Venice’ which made him a minor international celebrity and, according to Mattia Begali (Encyclopedia of Italian Literary Studies, 2006) was ‘one of the most engaging and suspenseful texts of eighteenth-century literature’.
Guillotine - Wikipedia
Parallels (2). The worlds of both men, Old Regime France and the Republic of Venice, were destroyed as a consequence of the French Revolution. Both were extraordinarily well travelled and kept the company of the great and the good throughout Europe (including Frederick the Great and Catherine the Great). Both were jealous of their own reputations as scholars although neither was averse to ingratiating themselves to those in power as it suited their own ends.
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Parallels (3). Both made fortunes from Paris lotteries: Voltaire through manipulation, Casanova by helping to establish what at that time was the most successful lottery in European history. Both were businessmen and entrepreneurs (Casanova a far less successful one, for the most part, than Voltaire). In terms of free-thinking and challenging social and religious norms both were advocates of libertinism, although the Frenchman wasn’t quite such a dedicated practitioner as the Venetian.
How did Voltaire influence Casanova? Casanova can be described as a Voltairean. He was preoccupied by the themes and ideas pursued by Voltaire, sometimes in agreement, sometimes not - eg, the nature of the soul, morality and God. For Voltaire, without the prospect of punishment or reward after death there was no basis for morality. Morality required the existence of God and an immortal soul. Casanova did not question the existence of God but did question the existence of an immortal soul.
Depiction of the Barre affair. How did Voltaire influence Casanova? Voltaire’s Enlightenment quest to create a secular morality is echoed in Casanova’s autobiography and works on history which are, in part, meant to be read as studies of human nature. These are accounts of human psychology, motivation and behaviour from which it is possible to draw conclusions without relying on explanations rooted in the designs of the Almighty.
How did Voltaire influence Casanova? He was a major influence as a role model. Voltaire was the quintessence of a man of letters and repeatedly we see genres which Voltaire either pioneered or was strongly associated with being taken up by Casanova, most notably the philosophical tale such as Casanova’s Icosameron. This was intended to be a defining masterwork with which he hoped to establish his name as a serious scholar worthy of public recognition.