Michel de Montaigne is a famous Renaissance philosopher and writer who invented the essay, a short piece that discusses the author's personal thoughts about a particular subject. As such, he is also famous for Essays, containing all his writings, considered his most important contribution to literature.
Early Life of Michel de Montaigne
Michel de Montaigne was born on February 28, 1533, from the wealthy family estate in southwest France. Despite his family's wealth, his father was a humanist who implanted the value of recognizing humility. As a toddler, he was sent too live with a peasant family so that his earliest memories would be of humble surroundings.
His father hired tutors who brought him up speaking nothing but Latin, the ancient Roman language. At school when all the other pupils were struggling to learn Latin, he spent his time reading the classics of Roman literature. Montaigne greatly benefited from his father's advanced views about education and his unusual education greatly helped him while serving as a soldier in Italy which, at that time, was the centre of European culture.
He attended a prestigious boarding school near Bordeaux and studied law in Toulouse. Following his father's death in 1568, he returned to the family chateau. At first he served in the legal courts, a job he did not like but carried out with characteristic skill and dignity to duty. At the age of 38, he devoted his life to intellectual pursuits, including writing.
Montaigne Essays and other Writings
His first book of collected essays, Essays, was published when he was 47. At that time it was considered advanced, as he discussed secular instead of religious issues. His main interest was how people relate to one another and to the world.
His essays cover a huge range of subjects, reflecting his wide interests and acquired knowledge. In one famous essay, "Of Cannibals," he wrote about the native peoples of the Americas, which at that time was just beginning to be explored by Europeans. He strongly argued that the beliefs of different cultures should be respected.
His essay on Apology for Raymond Sebond posits his thoughts on skepticism with his famous motto, "What do I know?" However, his other works remained positive just a he remained a Catholic.
Montaigne's Journal of Travels is a memoir of his travels in Italy and a collection of letters.
An Insight to Montaigne's Contribution
Michel de Montaigne's philosophy was ahead of his day. He died at the age of 59, on September 13, 1592. A true child of the Renaissance, he found Lucretius and Cicero's classical thoughts apt for his humanism from the former and authoritarian ideas from the latter. Shakespeare's The Tempest owed a great deal to his essay On Cannibals. He is credited with inspiring future thinkers including Blaise Pascal and René Descartes.
Books by Michel de Montaigne
- Apologia for Raymond Sebond, 1569 (Apology for Raymond Sebond)
- Essays, 1580-1588, 1595
- Journal of Travels, 1774 (Published after he died)
Sources:
- McGovern, Una, Ed. Biographical Dictionary. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers, 2002.
- Payne, Tom. The A-Z of Great Writers. London: Carlton, 1997.
- Stokes, Philip. Philosophy, the Great Thinkers. London: Capella, 2007.
 |
