Montaigne’s account of three exemplary wives implies that a woman is “good” if she will take her own life upon her husband’s death. But I think his cause isn’t really to fight for perfect love, but to point out the barbarism at the heart of it. Montaigne begins by saying that you know a good…

I don’t consider myself a pacifist because I believe there are justifications for war. But I despise celebrations of war and everything about warrior culture. So if Montaigne is going to force me to read and write about the greatness of Julius Caesar in two consecutive essays, then I’m going to digress and give weight…

Sometimes it’s difficult to tell when Montaigne is examining an issue straight up or if he’s doing it with a wink and a nod. This essay is a very clear example of the latter. I don’t even need to consult Montaigne scholars on this one, it’s obvious what he’s up to. Just take a look…

In some ways, I find Seneca to be a worthy role model. He wasn’t just a Stoic philosopher and dramatist; he was a highly influential government speechwriter, even advising a Roman Emperor the same way that Theodore Sorenson served John F. Kennedy. However, that Emperor was Nero and no matter how much good advice Seneca…

This examination of anger begins with an interesting preamble where Montaigne again mocks the leadership abilities of most men and declares that most parents are unsuited to the social responsibility of educating children. He has a special dislike for anyone who physically disciplines children in public, saying he has often been tempted to step in,…

it’s always a perilous endeavor to examine Montaigne’s faith. This is where we see him at most slippery. In one respect, Montaigne clearly is a Roman Catholic. He believes in sticking with the whatever authority exists in any country at any particular time, that holds for both political authority and religious. He was horrified by…