May 27, 2014 / Inspiration

Recommended Reading: Montaigne’s Essays

Nobody can get you in the mood for writing quite like Michel de Montaigne, the inventor of the personal essay — and direct literary ancestor of all bloggers.

<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/timg_vancouver/183752612">Image</a> by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/timg_vancouver/">Tim Gage</a> (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/">CC BY-SA 2.0</a>)

recommended reading montaigne

In case you thought you were hallucinating — yes, my blogging-related recommended reading for today is, indeed, from the 16th century. It’s the Essays by French writer Michel de Montaigne, who singlehandedly invented the genre (and the term!).

By Anonymous (Unknown) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Anonymous portrait of Montaigne, via Wikimedia Commons

Montaigne‘s not your average Dead Classical Author, though. Before you fling your iPad out the window, take a look at the following quote. If you’re a blogger, odds are you’ll recognize yourself in this:

I have no other end in this writing, but only to discover myself […].

(Of the Education of Children)

Montaigne was an extraordinary man for any number of reasons. He’s still loved and admired by writers everywhere, though, for being the first to understand that writing, no matter what the topic might be, is first and foremost an expression of our innermost selves.

With every sentence in his Essays (available for free in a number of formats here), he seems to tell us that thoughts are great, but it’s putting them out there — on a page, on a screen, somewhere where others can find them — that makes them valuable.

Lessons from a fierce writer

What could a guy who wrote with a quill possibly teach us about writing today?

There’s the lesson of consistency: for much of his adult life, Montaigne would spend time writing every single day. There’s also the lesson of good editing: he kept polishing his essays long after they’d first been printed.

But there’s also this:

There is nothing so contrary to my style, as a continued narrative, I so often interrupt and cut myself short in my writing for want of breath; I have neither composition nor explanation worth anything, and am ignorant, beyond a child, of the phrases and even the very words proper to express the most common things; and for that reason it is, that I have undertaken to say only what I can say, and have accommodated my subject to my strength.

(Of the Force of Imagination)

Good writers accept their imperfections, the things they’re ignorant about, and the limits of their own perspectives. They thrive using what they do know.

It might sound counterintuitive to let it all hang, so to speak, considering that our words convey a sense of who we are. Isn’t that the perfect reason to put on our fancy clothes and douse our prose with some extra cologne? Exactly the opposite, Montaigne insists:

The way of speaking that I love, is natural and plain, the same in writing as in speaking.
(Of the Education of Children)

It’s the little tics and quirks that make our voices — whether spoken or written — our own. Since we never know how others are going to receive our writing, we might as well own our words and click the “Publish” button with our heads raised high.

If you’re ever paralyzed by the thought that publishing something honest and unadorned will push your readers away, remember that the opposite is just as possible:

A competent reader often discovers in others’ writings other perfections than the author himself either intended or perceived, a richer sense and more quaint expression.
(Various events from the Same Counsel)

Giving the Essays a try

For those who’d like to dip their toes in the Essays (or dive head-first), it’s good to bear in mind that this is still old writing: some of the language might sound archaic, and yes, there are quite a few quotes in Latin (translated as well, of course). But there’s also wisdom, beauty, and wit in just about every line, so the effort pays itself off very quickly.

The best part? This isn’t a book to read cover-to-cover, or even chapter-after-chapter. Many Montaigne lovers, myself included, love jumping around between and within essays — essay-hopping, if you will. Still, if you’re looking for a more guided introduction, be sure to check out Maria Popova’s lovely piece, How to Live: Lessons from Montaigne, Godfather of Blogging.

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  1. People talk and talk of Montaigne, but very few mention La Boétie, his best friend who died from sickness at age 32.
    He unfortunately didn’t get as much time as Montaigne to write, but he did write the Discourse on Voluntary Servitude, which is still an extremely accurate text that I truly recommend to everyone. Plus, he wrote it when he was eighteen. That alone is amazing to me.
    But Montaigne is also someone who should definitely be on your reading list if you wish to be even remotely culturally savvy. Of course, if you can read the Essays in their original version in old French, that would be idea, but even with just a translation, I suggest you give them a read.

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    1. Great point about La Boétie — not only a solid writer in his own right, but also the guy who inspired some of Montaigne’s most moving writing on friendship and loss.

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  3. Thank you sir, I can be so hard on myself its annoying…more and more I am learning to breathe easy and take it one bite at a time..am reading! 🙂

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  4. very well written.. Loved reading the excerpts from his various essays..this blog teaches a lot to wannabe writers like me.Really shows how simple language can be written in a beautiful way. i would definitely read the essays of Montaigne

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  7. Well..I am new to this whole ‘blogging’ thing,that could be a reason why I have not known Montaigne till now.After reading this post of yours I have found out about this extraordinary person I haven’t known about till yet.His quotes are powerful and inspiring.

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  10. This is good reading. It encourages me to go ahead and publish my long forgotten writings. Otherwise if I don’t, no one will ever hear my voice and read those words that define who I am, my hopes, fears faith all the like.

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  11. Montaigne is excellent, and his essays are far cry both in form and quality from the essays most of us were taught to write in school.

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  13. his comment on plain speaking is very apt,I’ve realised only recently,that if your attention is caught up by high brow words in a sentence,then chances are that it is poor writing

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  15. Awesome post! You have introduced Montaigne to me for the very first time today. I love to write and I find myself in those situations where I write out a long article, post, essay, etc., only to question the finished piece. Thoughts of it not being good enough, or my words offending people, or maybe I’m revealing too much of myself, are always with me. For this reason, I have more drafts on my blog than posts! I liked your words “Since we never know how others are going to receive our writing, we might as well own our words and click the “Publish” button with our heads raised high.” Definitely a big eye-opener for me. Your advice will make hitting the Publish button much easier from here on out. Gracias!

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  16. An excellent choice. pascal thought him the most dangerous man in literature. trevor davies

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  20. According to one friend I have it is one of the three essential books she keeps on her beside table. The other two are a current read and The Bible. I have wanted a hardcover for some time now. You know how it is for starving students!!! HA! Irenadawn

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