Montaigne : a life / Philippe Desan ; translated by Steven Rendall and Lisa Neal.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Desan, Philippe, author.

Contributor:

Rendall, Steven, translator.

Neal, Lisa (Lisa Dow), translator.

Standardized Title:

Montaigne: Une biographie politique. English

Language:

English

French

Subjects (All):

Montaigne, Michel de, 1533-1592.

Montaigne, Michel de.

Montaigne, Michel de, 1533-1592--Political and social views.

Authors, French--16th century--Biography.

Authors, French.

Political and social views.

Genre:

Biographies.

Physical Description:

xxxv, 796 pages : illustrations ; 25 cm

Place of Publication:

Princeton : Princeton University Press, [2017]

Summary:

"One of the most important writers and thinkers of the Renaissance, Michel de Montaigne (1533-92) helped invent a literary genre that seemed more modern than anything that had come before. But did he do it, as he suggests in his Essays, by retreating to his chateau, turning his back on the world, and stoically detaching himself from his violent times? In this definitive biography, Philippe Desan, one of the world's leading authorities on Montaigne, overturns this longstanding myth by showing that Montaigne was constantly concerned with realizing his political ambitions--and that the literary and philosophical character of the Essays largely depends on them. The most comprehensive and authoritative biography of Montaigne yet written, this sweeping narrative offers a fascinating new picture of his life and work. As Desan shows, Montaigne always considered himself a political figure and he conceived of each edition of the Essays as an indispensable prerequisite to the next stage of his public career. He lived through eight civil wars, successfully lobbied to be raised to the nobility, and served as mayor of Bordeaux, special ambassador, and negotiator between Henry III and Henry of Navarre. It was only toward the very end of Montaigne's life, after his political failure, that he took refuge in literature. But, even then, it was his political experience that enabled him to find the right tone for his genre. In this indispensable biography, we discover a new Montaigne--caught up in the events of his time, making no separation between private and public life, and guided by strategy first in his words and silences. Neither candid nor transparent, but also not yielding to the cynicism of his age, this Montaigne lends a new depth to the Montaigne of literary legend"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Part 1 Ambitions

Chapter 1 The Eyquems' Social Ascension 3

A Family Matter 7

"Nobilibus parentibus" 15

Living Nobly 20

"We Latinized Ourselves" 28

The Balance Sheet of a Humanist Education 37

Chapter 2 A First Career as a Magistrate (1556-1570) 48

Parlementary Habitus 55

From the Cour des Aides in Périgueux to the Parlement in Bordeaux 67

Michel de Montaigne, Royal Councillor 84

The Religious Question 101

Chapter 3 La Boétie and Montaigne: Discourse on Servitude and Essay of Allegiance 112

The Letter about La Boétie's Deadi 117

La Boétie's Political Treatises: The Memorandum and the Discourse 123

Voluntary Servitude and Allegiance 133

The Politics of a Friendship 143

Chapter 4 "Witness My Cannibals": The Encounter with the Indians of the New World 155

Tupinambas and Tabajaras 159

From Rouen to Bordeaux 167

"Their Warfare Is Wholly Noble and Generous" 175

A "Simulacrum of the Truth" 179

Chapter 5 The Making of a Gentleman (1570-1580) 183

The Break with the Parlement 185

Montaigne as Editor of La Boétie's Works 199

Dedicatees Influential at the Court 207

An Inconvenient Publication 217

An Influential Neighbor: The Marquis of Trans 222

Honorific Rewards and Clientelism 232

Montaigne at Work 246

Chapter 6 The Essais of 1580: Moral, Political, and Military Discourses 254

"A Discourse on My Life and Actions" 256

The First Reader of the Essais 269

"Of the Battle of Gods" 277

An Apology for Sebond or a Justification of Montaigne? 285

A Skeleton in the Closet 299

A Royal Audience and a Military Siege 307

Part 2 Practices

Chapter 7 The Call of Rome, Or How Montaigne Never Became an Ambassador (1580-1581) 319

On Territory "Subject to the Emperor" 321

The Ambassador's Trade 326

A Montaigne in Spain 351

Montaigne in Rome 357

Paul de Foix and the Suspicion of Heresy 371

Roman Citizen 377

The Essais "Castigated and Brought into Harmony with the Opinions of the Monkish Doctors" 386

The Sociability of the Baths 392

The Travel Journal and the Secretary 401

Chapter 8 "Messieurs of Bordeaux Elected Me Mayor of Their City" (1581-1585) 408

The Mayor's Book 412

Bordeaux and Its Administration 422

The Public Welfare 436

A Contested Reelection 444

Manager of the City and "Tender Negotiator" 455

An "Administration ... without a Mark or a Trace"? 473

Chapter 9 "Benignity of the Great" and "Public Ruin" (1585-1588) 482

"Through an Extraordinarily Ticklish Part of the Country" 487

Secret Mission 501

"I Buy Printers in Guienne, Elsewhere They Buy Me" 508

Imprisoned in the Bastille 523

"A Girl in Picardy" 530

Observer at the Estates General of Blois 539

"Actum est de Gallia" 545

Chapter 10 The Marginalization of Montaigne (1588-1592) 549

A Tranquil Life 551

"The Only Book in the World of Its Kind" 566

From History to the Essay: Commynes and Tacitus 580

Socrates or Political Suicide 589

Montaigne's Death 603

Part 3 Post Mortem

Chapter 11 Montaigne's Political Posterity 613

Political Appropriations 614

Censure and Morality 621.

Notes:

Translated from the French.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 723-764) and index.

ISBN:

9780691167879

0691167877

OCLC:

948560963