Lettres provinciales
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The Lettres provinciales (Provincial letters) are a series of eighteen letters written by French philosopher and theologian Blaise Pascal under the pseudonym Louis de Montalte. They are a defense of Jansenist Antoine Arnauld, a friend of Pascal's who in 1656 was condemned by the Faculté de Théologie at the Sorbonne in Paris for views that were claimed to be heretical. The first letter is dated January 23, 1656 and the eighteenth March 24, 1657. A fragmentary nineteenth letter is frequently included with the other eighteen.
Structurally, the first few letters ridicule the dispute between the Thomists and the Jesuits on the nature of salvation, rather asserting a Jansenist (often understood as crypto-Calvinist) understanding of salvation. The rest of the letters are mainly an attack on Jesuit casuistry.
Letter XVI contains the famous quote, "I would have written a shorter letter, but I did not have the time."
The reaction to the Lettres provinciales was substantial. Pascal's use of wit, humor, and mockery in attacking existing institutions made his work extremely popular. However, its publication was primarily via the underground press, and in 1660 Louis XIV banned the book and ordered it shredded and burned. Nevertheless, the letters survived and influenced the prose of later French writers like Voltaire and Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Said Voltaire concerning the greatness of the letters, "All types of eloquence are contained in these letters."
