politics diminished monarchical AUTHORITY leaving
only symbolic or figurehead monarchies in Britain,
Spain, Sweden, and a few other countries.
Montaigne, Michel de (1533–1592) French
essayist
Born in a family mansion near Bordeaux, the young
Montaigne received a classical education at home,
made possible by his father’s wealth and minor nobil-
ity. At the age of six, Montaigne was sent to the Col-
lege of Guyenne at Bordeaux, and later he studied law
at the University of Toulouse. In 1557, he became a
member of the parliament of Bordeaux, where he
served for 13 years. After retiring from public life,
Montaigne devoted himself to writing, completing the
first edition of his most famous and important work,
the Essais (Essays), in 1580. Following his travels
throughout Europe, Montaigne became the mayor of
Bordeaux in 1581, a position he held for four years. He
spent the last years of his life attempting to mediate
between CATHOLICand PROTESTANTleaders and revising
his Essais (Essays),the final version of which was pub-
lished posthumously in 1595.
Montaigne’s mature thinking was informed by the
works of the Greek skeptics, especially of Sextus
Empiricus, and he adopted as his motto the phrase
“What do I know?” The Essaysreflect this influence in
a series of learned and witty discussions of various
topics, such as death, liars, the education of children,
diet, sex, and friendship. As a whole, the Essayspres-
ent Montaigne’s attempts to think through his experi-
ence of life and his own self-understanding, including
his skeptical doubt about the possibility of gaining
secure knowledge. According to Montaigne, the intel-
lect and the senses were fallible human faculties. All
claims about the discovery of absolute truths and all
judgments about the real nature of things were mere
deceptions that inevitably resulted in contradictions
and absurdities. We can apprehend the world only in
terms of appearances, which are changing and uncer-
tain; thus we can only try to live as best we can with
life’s contradictions while keeping faith in the possibil-
ities of human achievement.
Montaigne’s skepticism also led him to oppose reli-
gious, moral, and political dogmatism. Critical of
accepted customs and values, which he often scorned
as mere superstition, Montaigne displayed an admi-
rable ability to discuss and question openly nearly any
subject related to how we live and what to live for. In
several of the Essays, for instance, Montaigne con-
demned a number of legal practices common during
the period, including torture, corporal punishment,
and the persecution of witches. Montaigne’s HUMANISM
led him to speak against the cruelty found in human
relationships, and he consistently argued for including
more compassion in our treatment of one another.
Montaigne was not an idealist, however, and he recog-
nized the difficulty of achieving social and political
TOLERATIONdue to the diversity of conflicting individ-
ual beliefs. In response, Montaigne suggested that tol-
eration and the compassionate treatment of others
required a stable system of laws in each country.
Although complete JUSTICEwas likely impossible even
with the existence of good laws, Montaigne believed in
the necessity of resisting dogmatic AUTHORITYfor the
sake of human LIBERTY.Further Reading
Quint, D. Montaigne and the Quality of Mercy: Ethical and Politi-
cal Themes in the Essais.Princeton, N.J.: Princeton Univer-
sity Press, 1998.Montesquieu, Charles-Louis de Secondat,
baron de (1689–1755) French political philoso-
pher and economistMost famous for his book, The Spirit of the Laws
(1748), Montesquieu’s ideas of a MODERN REPUBLIC,
CHECKS AND BALANCES, and commercial VIRTUEs made
him celebrated in Europe and Early America. His prin-
ciples of separation of powers in a CONSTITUTION
greatly influence the Founders of the United States
(especially James MADISONand Alexander HAMILTONin
The Federalist Papers).
Montesquieu extolled the British constitution of a
limited (figurehead) MONARCHY, representative parlia-
mentary republic, and commercial EMPIRE. He felt that
dividing and separating governmental powers (checks
and balances) would form the most stable, just, and
prosperous country. CAPITALIST ETHICSwould promote
the commercial virtues of “frugality, economy, modera-
tion, work, prudence, tranquility, order, and rule.” The
British governments’ promotion of commerce was a
good thing, therefore. Modern republics, after ARISTO-
TLE’s polis, encourage the virtues of EQUALITY, DEMOC-
RACY, and PATRIOTISM, as opposed to the predominantMontesquieu, Charles-Louis de Secondat, baron de 211