Michel de Montaigne(1533 — 1592)
Michel de Montaigne
royaume de France
7 min read
French Renaissance writer and philosopher (1533–1592), Montaigne is the author of the Essays, a landmark work of French literature blending personal reflection and humanism. Mayor of Bordeaux, he contributed to the rise of modern critical thinking.
Frequently asked questions
Famous Quotes
« What do I know? »
« Friendship is a virtue necessary to life »
« Death is the condition of change and regeneration »
Key Facts
- 1580: Publication of the first edition of the Essays, a work of personal reflection on a wide range of subjects
- 1581–1585: Mayor of Bordeaux, a role he carried out with moderation and humanity
- 1588: Publication of an expanded edition of the Essays with new chapters
- Development of the method of doubt and self-analysis as a philosophical approach
- Promotion of religious tolerance and critique of dogmatism during the Wars of Religion
Works & Achievements
First publication of the Essays in Bordeaux, the founding work of a new genre: the literary essay. Montaigne takes himself as his own subject, exploring the human condition through his personal experiences and reflections.
Third book added in the fifth edition, considered the most philosophically accomplished. It addresses themes such as experience, vanity, and the art of living.
Expanded edition published after Montaigne's death by Marie de Gournay, his "adopted daughter", incorporating the numerous handwritten additions Montaigne had made in his own copy.
An account of his long European journey, written partly by a secretary and then by Montaigne himself. A valuable document on the customs, thermal baths, and daily life of the era.
Montaigne published and wrote the preface for the works of his late friend Étienne de La Boétie, thereby contributing to the dissemination of the latter's political and humanist thought.
Anecdotes
Montaigne had about fifty sentences in Greek and Latin, drawn from the Bible and ancient philosophers, carved into the beams of his round library tower. These maxims accompanied him daily in his reflections and still adorn today the room where he wrote the Essays.
In 1588, Montaigne was briefly imprisoned at the Bastille by the Catholic Leaguers while on his way to Paris. He was released the very same day thanks to the intervention of Queen Catherine de' Medici, a testament to the respect he enjoyed at court.
Montaigne had suffered from kidney stones since the age of forty. Far from complaining bitterly about it, he travelled to Italy partly in search of curative thermal baths, and meticulously recorded his symptoms in his Travel Journal with an almost scientific curiosity.
When his close friend Étienne de La Boétie died in 1563, Montaigne was devastated. He would later explain their absolute friendship with the words: "Because it was him, because it was me." This phrase has remained one of the most celebrated definitions of friendship in all of French literature.
Montaigne was elected mayor of Bordeaux in 1581 while he was travelling in Italy. He accepted the position reluctantly and was re-elected in 1583. During a devastating plague epidemic in 1585, he left the city to protect his family, which earned him criticism — but he addressed the matter candidly in his Essays.
Primary Sources
"Let all things be proposed to him; nothing shall be concealed from him, leaving to his choice. He will have no Tutor keeping a register of his hours."
"Because it was him, because it was me."
"Every man carries the entire form of the human condition within himself."
"I looked for a long time at this beautiful country, walking among the vines and gardens, and felt better for the waters of Lucca."
"One must live among the living. Let death find me planting my cabbages, caring little about it, and even less about my unfinished garden."
Key Places
Family home and retreat of Montaigne from 1571. It was in the château's round tower that he wrote the greater part of the Essays.
City where Montaigne served in the Parliament for thirteen years and of which he was mayor between 1581 and 1585. It represents his involvement in public and political life.
Montaigne stayed in Rome during his journey to Italy (1580–1581) and was received in audience by Pope Gregory XIII. He was also granted Roman citizenship there, an honour of which he was very proud.
Italian spa town where Montaigne stayed to treat his kidney stones. He recorded his impressions there in his Travel Journal with an almost clinical precision.
A renowned humanist institution where Montaigne studied from 1539 to 1546, receiving an education grounded in Latin, Greek, and the ancient authors.
Liens externes & ressources
Références
Œuvres
Les Essais (Livre I et II)
1580
Les Essais (Livre III)
1588
Les Essais (édition posthume dite « de l'exemplaire de Bordeaux »)
1595
Journal de voyage en Italie par la Suisse et l'Allemagne
1580-1581 (publié en 1774)
La Boétie : De la servitude volontaire (édition et préface)
1571
