Michel de Montaigne’s art of living quietly

John Vespasian explains that Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592) was aware of the dangers associated to popularity. He also knew the financial advantages that one can draw from it, but after careful reflection, he opted for a quiet lifestyle in the countryside. Montaigne’s choice is remarkable because it entailed a series of drastic changes; he had lived for decades in a sizeable city, pursued a demanding career, and interacted with hundreds of people; why did he choose to leave behind his professional ambitions? There is a key philosophical lesson in Montaigne’s decision to embrace a quiet lifestyle, a lesson that has become very hard to learn in our century of social media around the clock. Even for Montaigne, it took a while to analyse his own thoughts and record his arguments in writing. Montaigne conveyed his reflections in his essay titled “Not to Communicate a Man’s Honour.” Actually, the essay has little to do with honour and very much to do with lifestyle choices. Montaigne employs the term “honour” as a synonym for our professional and ethical reputation. In sixteenth-century France and in the rest of Europe, an impeccable reputation was crucial particularly in commerce and banking. The question raised by Montaigne is whether we should do our best to enhance our reputation. How much effort should we devote to responding to attacks against our honour? Should we seize every opportunity to increase our popularity? Montaigne recommends to pursue tangible achievements, so that they can speak for themselves. It’s a massive waste of time to debate people who criticise our skills and personal qualities. Instead, let us deliver great results and those will automatically enhance our popularity. Here is the link to the original article: https://johnvespasian.com/michel-de-montaignes-art-of-living-quietly/