French language
Published June 11, 1752
Micromégas
by Voltaire
5 stars
(1 review)
Le Micromégas is a 1752 novella by the French philosopher and satirist Voltaire. Along with his story "Plato's Dream", it is an early example in the literary genre of science fiction that draws upon the author's reading of Lucian's Icaromenippus, or the Sky Man, and has its place in the development of the history of literature. Some uncertainty surrounds the first publication of Micromégas, with possible editions dating to 1751 or as early as 1739 but with the widely accepted publication being in 1752.The tale recounts the visit to Earth of a being from a planet circling the star Sirius, and of his companion from the planet Saturn. The technique of using an outsider to comment on aspects of Western culture was popular in this period; Voltaire also used it in Zadig. There are, however far older examples with one of the earliest known being Lucian's Icaromenippus. Montesquieu, too, applied …
Le Micromégas is a 1752 novella by the French philosopher and satirist Voltaire. Along with his story "Plato's Dream", it is an early example in the literary genre of science fiction that draws upon the author's reading of Lucian's Icaromenippus, or the Sky Man, and has its place in the development of the history of literature. Some uncertainty surrounds the first publication of Micromégas, with possible editions dating to 1751 or as early as 1739 but with the widely accepted publication being in 1752.The tale recounts the visit to Earth of a being from a planet circling the star Sirius, and of his companion from the planet Saturn. The technique of using an outsider to comment on aspects of Western culture was popular in this period; Voltaire also used it in Zadig. There are, however far older examples with one of the earliest known being Lucian's Icaromenippus. Montesquieu, too, applied it in Persian Letters, as did José Cadalso in Cartas marruecas and Tomás Antônio Gonzaga in Cartas Chilenas.
