The role of purpose in the literary analysis of Montaigne’s essays

Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592) embodies the opposite of naivety because his observations revolve around human nature. In every situation, he always wanted to grasp the motivation of the persons involved. Before becoming a writer, Montaigne had practised law for a decade in Bordeaux. He had many times found himself in the middle of family and business conflicts, and had witnessed the best and worst of human nature. We could ask ourselves a hundred times why Montaigne wrote in the first person, used historical anecdotes and rhetorical questions, but the answers will remain elusive as long as we fail to look at the full picture. Let me illustrate it with an example, namely, the essay titled “On the three kinds of relationships,” which passes review to the main characteristics of marriage, friendship and parenthood. Montaigne draws from the Bible the example of King David and Jonathan (eleventh century BC) as a relationship of mutual trust and shared intellectual interests. Each of the two men held a very different social position, but their friendship developed all the same. On a personal level, Montaigne refers to his friendship with Etienne de La Boetie (1530-1563), a man who had shared the interests of Montaigne in philosophy, history and literature. In the section devoted to marriage, Montaigne recalls a few examples of harmonious couples in history, such as Alexander the Great (356-323 BC) and his wife Roxanne. Their enduring love, theorises Montaigne, rested on their deep compatibility. When it comes to parental relationships, Montaigne recalls the Roman Emperor Augustus (63 BC-14 AD) and his mother, Atia. She died shortly after Augustus twentieth birthday, after having nurtured his social and political talents, preparing him for a successful career. Here is the link to the original article: https://johnvespasian.com/the-role-of-purpose-in-the-literary-analysis-of-michel-de-montaignes-essays/