French Literature Reviews - 2026
B. Bourrit, Montaigne, pensées frivoles et vaines écorces
Medieval and Renaissance Studies
Montaigne, pensées frivoles et vaines écorces
Bernard Bourrit
Publication date: 29/05/2018
Publisher: Le Temps qu'il fait
ISBN 978-2-86853-642-6
EAN: 9782868536426
Number of pages: 232 p.
"Reflected in the mirror of political philosophy, for which the most honorable action is that which is useful to many, Montaigne views himself as a coward who, out of conscience, has renounced public affairs (it was too heavy a calling in which he had too few means to act) and whose only remaining ambition is to live without harming either himself or others, enjoying the world as best he can, in a manner quite excusable."
This is not a book about Montaigne, nor an introduction to his thought, nor a scholarly commentary; it is a book "with" Montaigne, written alongside him, using his words, to make his voice heard.
Michel de Montaigne's decision to withdraw from his public duties as a magistrate and mayor of Bordeaux during the French Wars of Religion is a well-known event in literary history. In Montaigne, pensées frivoles et vaines écorces, Bernard Bourrit presents Montaigne's view of himself as one who, out of conscience, renounced public affairs. Viewed through the lens of political philosophy, this choice reflects an ambition to live without harming himself or others.
This volume is neither an introduction to Montaigne's thought nor a scholarly commentary. Instead, it is written alongside him, using his own words to make his voice heard. Readers interested in Renaissance humanism and the philosophy of the self may find this work relevant.