Michel de Montaigne - The Complete Essays (Penguin Classics) | 
 enlarge | Author: Michel De Montaigne
Creator: M. A. Screech
Publisher: Penguin Classics
Category: Book
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Avg. Customer Rating:  18 reviews
Sales Rank: 20706
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 1344
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.7
Dimensions (in): 7.7 x 5.1 x 2.3
ISBN: 0140446044
Dewey Decimal Number: 844.3
EAN: 9780140446043
ASIN: 0140446044
Publication Date: September 7, 1993
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Belongs In Everyone's Library: The Perfect Essays March 12, 2007
9 out of 9 found this review helpful
What's not to like about Montaigne? Everytime I pick through parts of his essays [and it does not matter where one begins] I find myself in deep thought. Sometimes I feel as if Montaigne were speaking to me. I have the Donald Frame translation. Although I have read the Cohen translation too, and I do have a copy of it somewhere in this jungle I call my library. I have just recently purchased this Penguin edition, with another yet another translation. But no matter, the words and wit of Montaigne are, and will be as timeless as long as people are willing to open these pages and gather meaning from them. And I will always continue to do so.
These essays were meant to be read and re-read. And you know, I never tire of reading Michel de Montaigne. This mans works have been a part of my life for as long as I can recall. And how many times can you remember picking up the same books over and over again to reach words of wisdom? And Montaigne's humble wisdom and honest look at himself is what makes these essays so profound and enjoyable to read. Why? Because he took a long hard look deep into his own soul and wrote for himself, and to himself: And in turn, he imparted these essays to the rest of us. Which I am forever grateful to him for. If you have never read Montaigne, it's time you do. Highly recommended. Should be required reading in all schools today.
Essays March 15, 2006
24 out of 24 found this review helpful
Montaigne. He has lessons for us all, I've found.
Some of the lessons are hard. He writes about everything, but most of all, he writes about himself. There is a painful clarity to his work - but that cliche term does nothing to properly explain what it is he accomplishes with his writing.
At thirty-three, Montaigne decided to retire to his home and write. He had vague ideas about writing a gentleman's book on warfare, and the first few essays reflect that. But, as he progressed, he kept going on little side journeys into his own thoughts and opinions. At first, Montaigne reigned himself in, struggling to stay true to the path he had decided for himself.
Happily for us, he failed.
He abandoned the idea of writing for gentlemen - though there are still slight evidences of this throughout the work. Instead, he decided to focus on the one thing he knew better than anybody else in the entire world - Montaigne. Who else could know more, or would bother to take as much time exploring this one man than the man himself? And why not explore his own mind - every day, he has to live and deal with the advantages and disadvantages, the habits and the thoughts, the opinions and the ironies of being Montaigne. Thus, he decided, it was worth exploring. In his view, there was nothing more important than understanding one's self. If you cannot understand yourself, how can you expect to understand anybody else?
There are moments of 'painful clarity', as I said above. Montaigne discusses (his) impotence, his imperfect marriage, the disappointments he has created in others, the times when he did not do what he should. But he also talks about how he can make himself a better person, and how, in a lot of ways, he is an admirable person. It is important to realise that Montaigne is not writing an apology for himself. He is putting himself on to paper, 'warts and all', and declaring it true. There is a point in one of the essays where he declares that he wouldn't want anyone to lie about the person he is, even if they flattered him or praised him. This is, in a nutshell, Montaigne's thinking. He is not concerned with being the greatest person ever known - he is concerned with understanding himself.
Four hundred years on, what is there to offer us, the modern reader, in Montaigne? An infinity of wisdom. Could I, in honesty, completely and unwaveringly disect myself for the consumption of both myself and others? I don't think so. I very much fear that the answer is no. And yet - why not? Is it shame? I don't think so, as I have nothing major to hide. Perhaps, then, it is simply the fear of unrealised ideas and thoughts. If I am unaware of myself, I cannot present it. Montaigne was and is aware of himself and thus manages to accurately describe the person that he is.
Montaigne's essays are invaluable not only for the man that they portray, but for the wisdom in what is spoken. Montaigne has thought about so many aspects of what it is to be a human and alive, and we can all learn from this. The topics he discusses go beyond mere 16th century issues, and deal with concepts, ideas and concerns that affect us now, and will affect us always. Absolutely essential reading.
Brilliant translation, but the editing is annoying. January 20, 2006
13 out of 16 found this review helpful
This English translation of Montaigne's Complete Essays is wonderful. Although I like it better than Donald Frame's version, I actually prefer J.M. Cohen's to either. Cohen's translation is only a selection, unfortunately. If you need the Complete Essays, go with Screech.
Screech's version, however, has a very annoying problem. As in Frame's translation, letters are used within the text to note differences between the three major editions of the Essays (A, B, C). Frame's version uses small capital letters inserted within the text; they are unobtrusive and can be ignored. Screech's version, however, uses full-sized letters within brackets with a lot of space surrounding them. They are just too darned disruptive. Why in the heck did they do this? Perhaps they intended it for academic or scholarly use. It's a shame. I hope that Penguin will issue a new edition or revision that will take care of this problem.
Use the "Look Inside" feature of this book to decide for yourself.
The definitive philosopher November 28, 2005
14 out of 15 found this review helpful
In the entire history of western philosophy, there is not one person I can praise more than Michel de Montaigne. Normally, any book over 500 pages tends to become tedious to me, and works of philosophy over that length become insufferable. The best praise I can give this book is to say that at 1200 pages, I was not the least weary of it. In fact, I wished it was longer! Montaigne is the definitive philosopher, a man driven to write out of boredom, who presents his essays as his views, never trying to categorize and name realities, but simply marvelling over everything, from literature to pets. His broad learning and wonderfully disorganized style lead the reader on a journey into the what ifs, and whys of existence. Montaigne is the epitome of a renaissance man. His views in most situations are more modern than yesterday. He speaks out for the virtues of women, carefully denounces war, subtly questions the more extraneous doctrines of Catholicism, and even denounces colonialism and promotes respect of racial and cultural differences. This is not a man one would have expected to find in the 1500s. But here he is. And his text! Often saying that his memory was weak, MOntaigne demonstrates it by going off on wild tangents for thirty pages, only to realize that he has succeeding in proving his original idea without his knowledge. His sentences and rich prose leap across the pages, and dance with ideas of the sublime and the ridiculous, ideas which he does not so much attempt to resolve as ponder upon a page. He never once falls into the philosopher's folly of stating his views as though they were fact, and is often very careful to say, "This is what I think" in one way or another. He never attempts to convince the reader, for he originally never intended his essays to have a reader. In situations where he would challenge authority, he is always careful to say, for instance, "But my own views are nothing, the church of course knows better". More than any other work of philosophy, the Essays are an adventure, leading one through the soul of a man, a man who thought so little of himself but was so great. It reads almost as a novel, and at the end, after 1200 pages of Essays, Montaigne stands before the reader as clearly as any historical or fictional figure ever has. This is the true Magnum Opus of western philosophy.
One of the world's great comforts November 28, 2005
20 out of 20 found this review helpful
I cannot praise this book highly enough. It is one of those rare books that can change your life. Sure, many people say something similar about a particular book, but it is genuinely true in this instance. Montaigne is wise, humane, and very humourous. If I had to live on an island and could only take three books with me, this would be one of them. And, it would be an easy choice to make. I have read the Essays cover to cover twice already and plan to do so again many times in my life.
Here are some general points you might want to keep in mind when reading Montaigne's Essays: First, he doesn't always stick to the topic announced at the beginning of an essay. Sometimes, an essay appears to be about a particular topic but ends up being about something else entirely. Second, even when Montainge makes a half-hearted attempt at staying on topic, the journey is still the scenic route instead of a straight shot (but, this is half the fun of his Essays). Third, Montaigne's Essays are a perfect crash course on the wisdom to be found in the writings of the Latin authors. Finally, Montaigne is surprisingly skeptical and relativistic on many issues. This is obviously why his Essays are so relevant even today.
Now for a word on translations. The two primary translations that are easily available are this Penguin edition translated by Screech and the Stanford University Press edition translated by Frame. Each edition has its advantages and disadvantages, and it's a shame the editions can't be combined to create the perfect translation.
The Penguin/Screech edition includes the original and a translation of all Montaigne's foreign language quotations. The vast majority of these are in Latin; so, if you know some Latin, this is helpful. It also includes very helpful notes on obscure literary and historical issues, which provides for greater understanding. However, if you read the introduction and Screech's notes carefully, you will realize he does have an agenda. Screech plays down Montaigne's skepticism and tries to portray Montaigne as being more religious than he was.
As to the Stanford/Frame edition, its translation is much closer to the original French than Screech's. If you put the French text and Frame's translation side by side, you'll see what I mean (even if your French is pretty weak like mine). And, Frame does not play down Montaigne's skepticism - he lets Montaigne speak for himself. But, Frame's translation does have some flaws. It does not include the original for foreign language quotations. And, when Frame translates Latin poetry, he almost always makes it rhyme even when the original Latin does not rhyme. I find this jarring and not true to the original. Frame also does not include any helpful notes.
All in all, I'd like to combine Frame's translation of Montaigne's French with Screech's original and translation of all foreign language quotations. This would be the best possible version of the Essays.
This book is one of the finest products of the human mind. You will not regret the significant amount of time it will take to read these Essays. And, if you read them carefully, you'll never look at the world the same way again.
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