JUSPI (Jurnal Sejarah Peradaban Islam)
Vol 10, No 1 (2026)

Voltaire’s Ambivalent Representation of Islam: An Intellectual History Analysis of the XVIII Century Enlightenment

Ahmad Al Ghiffari Tauhid (Universitas Islam Negeri Sunan Gunung Djati Bandung)
Ajid Thohir (Universitas Islam Negeri Sunan Gunung Djati Bandung)
Fathia Lestari (Universitas Islam Negeri Sunan Gunung Djati Bandung)



Article Info

Publish Date
31 Jul 2026

Abstract

Voltaire’s critical stance toward religion constitutes a controversial discourse within Enlightenment intellectual history, particularly regarding his satirical critiques of religious dogma and clerical institutions. However, his position on Islam reveals a unique, non-monolithic characteristic that has rarely been examined as a central theme in Voltaire scholarship. Utilizing the Historical method with an Intellectual History approach, this study conducts a descriptive textual analysis by identifying, classifying, and synthesizing textual representations of Voltaire’s ambivalence toward Islam across his corpus within the eighteenth-century intellectual context. The findings indicate that critique and appreciation coexisted simultaneously without a linear chronology, showing no significant shift in his attitude throughout his career. This study challenges previous discourses that have tended to position Voltaire within a dichotomous or chronological framework, offering a more nuanced analytical model that enriches Voltaire scholarship and intellectual history by showing how conflicting representations coexist within a single corpus.

Copyrights © 2026






Journal Info

Abbrev

Publisher

Subject

Humanities Social Sciences

Description

JUSPI (Jurnal Sejarah Peradaban Islam) publishes scientific articles in the fields of historical, social and humanities. JUSPI invites academics to publish their research articles, especially historical, social and humanities studies with Islamic themes, for example about Islamic groups or ...