Listen "The essays by Michel de Montaigne"
Episode Synopsis
Imagine devoting two decades of your life to writing dozens of essays with no expectation of anyone ever reading them. For most people, such a perspective would not make sense. Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592) thought otherwise. Why? Because he was primarily writing for himself. There were a few best-selling books in the sixteenth century but they made little money for their authors. Literature became a business only in the nineteenth century, when technology made it possible to print novels at a low-cost and sell them in large quantities. Montaigne never enjoyed the advantages of literary success, but still, he carried out a project that he had set for himself. He wanted to explore in depth subjects that interested him, and his method of exploration was writing essays. He wrote non-stop for two decades, jumping from subject to subject without any pre-established order. He would address subjects that he found intriguing, sometimes repeating himself, but never bothered to justify his inconsistencies. Montaigne possessed an insatiable curiosity. He was fond of literature (mostly ancient Greek and Roman authors), history, philosophy and law, but did not hesitate to explore any subject that attracted his attention. Psychology had not yet established itself as a science in the sixteenth century, but Montaigne was unafraid to explore new grounds. I consider him a pioneer in the field of self-help and how-to literature because he provided advice of perennial quality to readers. For instance, he wrote essays about how to deal with one’s own imperfections or inconsistencies, how imagination works, the art of conversation, how to educate children, how to make friends, and how to deal with cultural diversity. Any attempt to classify Montaigne’s essays into an orderly plan is destined to failure, precisely because there was never a plan. Montaigne acknowledged that the choice of subjects was solely dictated by his fancy. He wrote in order to philosophise and find the truth, not with the goal of pleasing readers. Here is the link to the original article: https://johnvespasian.com/the-essays-by-michel-de-montaigne/
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