"A few acres of snow" (in the original French, "quelques arpents de neige" with "vers le Canada") is one of several quotations from Voltaire, the 18th-century writer, which are representative of his sneering evaluation of Canada, and by extension New France, as lacking economic value and strategic importance to 18th-century France. The exact phrase first appears in 1758 in chapter 23 of Voltaire's book Candide, although the phrase "a few acres of ice" appeared in a letter he wrote in 1757. Voltaire wrote similar sarcastic remarks in other works.
Read more about A Few Acres Of Snow: Historical Context of The Quotations, Modern Usage
Famous quotes containing the words acres and/or snow:
“Happy the man whose wish and care
A few paternal acres bound,
Content to breathe his native air
In his own ground:”
—Alexander Pope (1688–1744)
“Utterly frozen is this youthful lady,
Even as the snow that lies within the shade;
For she is no more moved than is the stone
By the sweet season which makes warm the hills”
—Dante Alighieri (1265–1321)