Read more
Montaigne's Essays resemble a patchwork of personal reflections, but they engage with questions that animate the human mind, and tend to a single goal: to live better in the present and to prepare for death. For this reason, Montaigne's thought and writings have been a subject of enduring interest across disciplines. This
Handbook brings together essays by prominent scholars that examine Montaigne's literary, philosophical, and political contributions, and assess his legacy and relevance today in a global perspective. It presents Montaigne's
Essays not only in their historical context but also as a starting point for discussing issues that concern us today.
List of contents
- CONTENTS
- Note on editions
- Montaigne's Essays: A Book Consubstantial with its Author
- Philippe Desan
- PART I: HISTORICAL MONTAIGNE
- 1. From Eyquem to Montaigne
- Philippe Desan
- 2. Montaigne's Education
- George Hoffmann
- 3. The Humanist Tradition and Montaigne
- John O'Brien
- 4. Montaigne, Translator of Raymond Sebond
- Mireille Habert
- 5. La Boétie and Montaigne
- Michel Magnien
- 6. The Public Life of Montaigne
- Philippe Desan
- 7. Montaigne and the Wars of Religion
- Mark Greengrass
- 8. Publishing History of the Essays
- Jean Balsamo
- 9. Montaigne's Travel Journal
- François Rigolot
- 10. Montaigne, the New World, and Precolonialisms
- Timothy Reiss
- 11. Montaigne and History
- John Lyons
- 12. Montaigne's Political Thought
- Biancamaria Fontana
- 13. Montaigne's Turn to Modern Philosophy
- Ann Hartle
- 14. Montaigne: Early Modern, Modern, Postmodern
- Zachary Schiffman
- PART II: RECEPTION OF MONTAIGNE
- 15. Montaigne in the World
- Paul Smith
- 16. Montaigne in England and America
- Warren Boutcher
- 17. Montaigne and Shakespeare
- William Hamlin
- 18. Montaigne and Descartes
- Michael Moriarty
- PART III: MODERN AND GLOBAL MONTAIGNE
- 19. Montaigne on Language
- Katie Chenoweth
- 20. Montaigne on Style
- Kathy Eden
- 21. Montaigne on Rhetoric
- Déborah Knop
- 22. Montaigne on Reading
- Peter Mack
- 23. Montaigne on Free Thinking
- Richard Scholar
- 24. Montaigne on Self
- Marie-Clarté Lagrée
- 25. Montaigne on Justice and Law
- Valérie M. Dionne
- 26. Montaigne on Violence
- Cynthia Nazarian
- 27. Montaigne on Virtue and Ethics
- Ullrich Langer
- 28. Montaigne on Faith and Religion
- Alain Legros
- 29. Montaigne on Truth and Skepticism
- Jan Miernowski
- 30. Montaigne on Gender
- Todd W. Reeser
- 31. Montaigne on Women
- Mary McKinley
- 32. Montaigne on Empathy
- Sarah Bakewell
- 33. Montaigne on Friendship
- Eric McPhail
- 34. Montaigne on Love
- Elizabeth Guild
- 35. Montaigne on Memory
- Andrea Frisch
- 36. Montaigne on Curiosity
- Zahi Zalloua
- 37. Montaigne on Imagination
- Wes Williams
- 38. Montaigne on Alterity
- Tom Conley
- 39. Montaigne on Monsters and Monstrosity
- Kathleen Long
- 40. Montaigne on Animals
- Thierry Gontier
- 41. Montaigne on Aging
- Cynthia Skenazi
- 42. Montaigne on Health and Death
- Dorothea Heitsch
- Conclusion: Bibliographic and Research Resources on Montaigne
- Philippe Desan
About the author
Philippe Desan is Howard L. Willett Professor of French Literature and History of Culture at the University of Chicago. Among his most recent books are Montaigne: A Life (Princeton University Press, 2016), Bibliotheca Desaniana: Catalogue Montaigne (Classiques Garnier, 2011), and Montaigne: Les formes du monde et de l'esprit (Presses de l'Université Paris-Sorbonne, 2008). He edited the Essays of 1582 (2005), the Bordeaux Copy of the Essays (2002), and Montaigne's Travel Journal (2014), and is the general editor of Montaigne Studies.
lit171518
Summary
In 1580, Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592) published a book unique by its title and its content: Essays"R. A literary genre was born. At first sight, the Essays resemble a patchwork of personal reflections, but they engage with questions that animate the human mind, and tend toward a single goal: to live better in the present and to prepare for death. For this reason, Montaigne's thought and writings have been a subject of enduring interest across disciplines. This "Handbook brings together essays by prominent scholars that examine Montaigne's literary, philosophical, and political contributions, and assess his legacy and relevance today in a global perspective.
The chapters of this Handbook offer a sweeping study of Montaigne across different disciplines and in a global perspective. One section covers the historical Montaigne, situating his thought in his own time and space, notably the Wars of Religion in France. The political, historical and religious context of Montaigne's Essays requires a rigorous presentation to inform the modern reader of the issues and problems that confronted Montaigne and his contemporaries in his own time.
In addition to this contextual approach to Montaigne, the Handbook also establishes a connection between Montaigne's writings and issues and problems directly relevant to our modern times, that is to say, our age of global ideology. Montaigne's considerations, or essays, offer a point of departure for the modern reader's own assessments. The Essays analyze what can be broadly defined as human nature, the endless process by which the individual tries to impose opinions upon others through the production of laws, policies or philosophies. Montaigne's motto -- "What do I know?" -- is a simple question yet one of perennial significance. One could argue that reading Montaigne today teaches us that the angle defines the world we see, or, as Montaigne wrote: "What matters is not merely that we see the thing, but how we see it."
Additional text
This is obviously a book that the reader delves into as the need arises. ... [the chapters] are all learned, they are all informative, and they all make us think about Montaigne in ways that diverge from tradition. Most importantly, they are almost all stimulating to read.
