His story recounts a dream attributed to the renowned Greek Philosopher, wherein Demiurgos, a god-like entity referred to as the "eternal geometer", appoints to a number of "lesser superbeings" the task of creating their own worlds.
Some of the most notable ancient Greek Philosophers (Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle) significantly shaped the later ideas and writings propounded by French Enlightenment thinkers.
)[4] That is to say, Plato's philosophy reaffirmed the hierarchical structures established by religion by suggesting that philosophical inquiry should be reserved to those capable of understanding it.
While not explicitly stated, Voltaire himself was highly critical of Christianity (more specifically, authority figures within the church),[5] a stance evident in his seminal work, Candide, published in 1759.
[6] In this view, the clergy, and religion more broadly, reaffirms ignorance of social realities by passing off religious teachings as objective truths.
[1] That being said, the human condition and one's innate desire for connection--and, ironically, for particularity or "distinctness" from others--play a central role in shaping the narrative's critique of Religion.
For Voltaire, religion as both a philosophical and social enterprise not only perpetuates ignorance but also directly contradicts its purported aim of spreading the benevolent teachings of God--as demonstrated by the self-interested behavior of the humans occupying Demogorgon's Earth.
"[1] This assertion, though it appears to be clothed in a layer of sarcasm, enhances the intricacy of the narrative, as most ancient Greeks interpreted dreams as prophetic messages from the gods.
[8] In tablet VII, Enkidu--Gilgamesh's companion--dreams of a discussion between the Gods, who are deciding his punishment for his involvement in the slaughter of the Bull of Heaven and Humbaba.
[9] Moreover, in the Mesopotamian deluge myth, the Epic of Atra-Hasis, the story's hero, Atrahasis is warned by Enki of the impending flood through the medium of a dream.
[7] On a more controversial note, in The Republic, Plato dons a perspective that closely resembles a Freudian interpretation of dreams, despite writing centuries before him: "…in all of us, even the most highly respectable, there is a lawless wild beast nature, which peers out in sleep".