ABSTRACT
There is scarcely any man into whose character authors have more insight than that of Montaigne. He has written four volumes of “Essays,” which are principally taken up by narrations of what happened to himself, or dissertations on his own nature, and this in an enlightened and philosophical, though quaint and native style, which renders him one of the most delightful authors in the world. Montaigne’s heart was warm; his temper cheerful, though unequal; his imagination lively; his affections exalted to enthusiasm; and this ardour of disposition, joined to the sort of personal indolence which he describes, renders him a singular character. Montaigne’s father lived to old age. He married late in life, and the authors are ignorant of the date of his death; from that period Montaigne himself seems to have lived chiefly at his paternal castle.
