The Complete Essays

The Complete Essays is a rich, entertaining and enlightening volume that brings together the works of this great French Renaissance writer. Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592) was one of the most influential figures of the Renaissance, single-handedly responsible for popularizing the essay as a literary form. In 1572, he retired to his estates to devote himself to leisure, reading and reflection. There he wrote his constantly expanding essays inspired by the ideas he found in books contained in his library and from his own experience.